Chasing Ghosts
by Charles Xavier
Summary: Jesse is tormented by nightmarish visions. Shortly thereafter, he receives an eerie letter from his deceased friend, Leslie, beckoning him to a 'special place' from her childhood. A place located in a forgotten and obscure town, known only as Silent Hill.
1. Chapter 1

Author's Note: This story is based on the 2007 Disney movie. Yes, I'm aware there's a separate category for this, but I feel most BTT readers tend to visit here more often. So I hope none of you mind if I place this story in Books rather than Movies. No trouble intended.

Disclaimer: BTT and Silent Hill belong to Katherine Paterson and Konami respectfully. No profit is being made out of this work.

…

Chasing Ghosts

…

Chapter One

…

"Jesse…"

Her voice called out to him.

"Jesse…"

Her voice called out to him again.

"Hey, Jesse! Get up!"

Jesse Aarons awoke from his sleep, finding himself standing in a field of flowers, stretching over miles where Terabithia lay ahead, the magical fantasy kingdom he once ruled when he was a child. A cool breeze swept across his back, causing the flowers to lean forwards. They pointed towards an elegant eleven-year-old girl, standing in the field just a short distance away from Jesse.

She was dressed in strange colorful clothes that only he recognized. She had brightly blonde hair that only he recognized. And her smile…it was the only graceful smile that he recognized. Jesse was staring at his deceased soul mate, Leslie Burke.

"Leslie…?" Jesse rubbed his eyes and opened them again. She was still there. "Is it really you?"

"Of course it is, silly!" Leslie replied with her cheerful grin.

Jesse tried to gather his thoughts, questioning himself why he was here. Was there any reason? Was there any purpose? He couldn't figure anything out.

"Am I dreaming? Is this real?" Jesse had to ask.

"Well, am I dreaming YOU?" Leslie chuckled. "I'm as real as you want me to be, Jess, and so is all of Terabithia. Don't you remember? We made this world together ourselves."

"Yeah…I guess." Jesse said hesitantly.

It was as glamorous as he remembered it to be. There were clear skies, luscious meadows and a magnificent castle built for the King and Queen; Jesse and Leslie respectfully. What was missing, however, were the wondrous inhabitants of Terabithia.

Jesse noticed that their kingdom was deserted. He heard no voices, no music and saw nobody to greet him or Leslie. Wherever did the Terabithians go? Did they leave? And if so, why?

Jesse wondered about all these questions…because a sudden feeling overcame him. It was a feeling of something ominous present in Terabithia. It brought chills to his spine and gave him the goose bumps.

"Leslie, what's going on?" he asked her, knowing well that something wasn't right.

"Don't you know?" Leslie said. "Ever since you left, Terabithia has been overrun by the evil army of the Otherworld."

"Otherworld?"

"Yes, the Otherworld." Leslie confirmed. "It's a world so ruined and corrupted that the Terabithians never dared to speak about it. It's a world so dark and confused that very few people who have ventured into it have returned alive. And those that dwell there…are far beyond any evil imaginable."

As she spoke, the wind began to intensify as it shifted direction. The flowers leaned towards to Jesse while petals and pollen scattered across the field and into his face. The sunlight brightened, forcing Jesse to squint while his vision was obscured.

When he regained his sight, he now noticed somebody, or something, behind Leslie. It was slowly lumbering towards her, dragging a heavy sword-like knife. At once, Jesse knew that his best friend was in impending danger.

"Leslie, run!" he called out to her, but it was no use, because Leslie couldn't hear his words.

"What did you say, Jess?" she asked, frowning as the figure drew closer.

"RUN LESLIE, RUN!" Jesse cried…but still, Leslie did not understand what he was warning her about.

"WHAT? I CAN'T HEAR YOU!" she asked again, as the figure quietly positioned itself behind its victim and drew its weapon.

"LESLIE, BEHIND YOU!" Jesse pointed in distress.

Leslie spun round quickly. She gasped in despair and watched the figure raise its knife threateningly above her head with both hands. Jesse scampered across the field in hopes to save her from a horrifying death. He reached his arm out, stretching as far as he could. But he was too late, as the figure dropped its knife down upon the helpless girl.

Jesse could only scream at this point.

…

"NOOOOOO!"

Twenty-one-year-old Jesse rose from his bed. He was sweating in panic and his heart raced so fast that it could have burst out through his ribcage. His hands were shaking in a frenzy, reaching out towards the open window of his dormitory…where the cool nightly breeze swept in.

But it wasn't the breeze that woke Jesse up from his sleep. It was his iPhone, ringing constantly at its highest volume and glowing like a nightlight on his bedside table. Jesse rolled over and grabbed his phone, answering the late call.

"Um, hello…?" he moaned.

"Hello, Jesse? This is your therapist, Dr. Laura Sunderland, speaking on the phone." his caller answered. "Listen, I'm sorry for calling you so late at this hour, but I just need to confirm about our appointment tomorrow…well, today technically speaking."

Jesse checked his wristwatch to find out the current time as 2:50am.

"No, don't be sorry." Jesse replied, leaving the bed to shut his window. "In fact, you just did me a huge favor. I was having a bad dream again."

"Oh, another one?" Dr. Sunderland said curiously. "Lemme guess; did it involve Leslie and 'you-know-what' again?"

Jesse let out a painful sigh. "Yeah…"

"Care to talk about it?"

…

Dr. Sunderland sat at her desk, studying Jesse's old art book, page by page. It contained all of his work, from when Jesse was in elementary school until now, currently in college. She couldn't stop admiring his unique talent in drawing. More especially, she was always fascinated by the picturesque landscapes of Terabithia and the designs of its enchanting people.

"Jesse, you never cease to amaze me." Dr. Sunderland commended him. "Your drawings are looking much better each year."

Her client was busy staring up at the ceiling fans, lying on her comfortable leather couch. He was playing about with one of her teddy bears that she kept in her office, mainly for the younger kids she took care of.

"Thanks." Jesse said with a humble shrug. "It's like what Leslie often used to say; keep your mind wide open."

"I couldn't agree more." Dr. Sunderland replied. "So where exactly is this 'you-know-what' you've been dying to show me?"

"Keep looking." Jesse said. "You'll find it."

Dr. Sunderland continued turning the pages, trying to find the drawing Jesse was mentioning about over the phone last night. It was near the end of the book when she found the haunting figure he had been envisioning in his dreams recently.

'You-know-what' looked profoundly abnormal from any of Jesse's typical artwork. It was drawn as a large and physically fit human male, bearing ghastly pale skin. It wore a white, bloodstained robe, like that of a butcher's smock. It was wielding in one hand, a sword-like knife…or an oversized blade. Most disturbing, however, was that its head was entirely concealed by a red triangular helmet…its shape reminiscent of a pyramid.

"Oh, my." Dr. Sunderland said, removing her glasses for a moment to closer examine Jesse's monstrous friend. "This is very unusual. This must be the fellow you've been meeting up in your dreams for the past…three weeks?"

"Four." Jesse corrected her. "It's always the same thing. Leslie and I are talking to each other…sometimes in Terabithia…sometimes at school…sometimes at my home…and then it just appears out of nowhere. I keep telling Leslie to run, to hide…but she can't hear me. I keep trying to save her…but I never can."

Jesse was sinking his nails into the teddy bear he was holding, gritting his teeth as he spoke. He began to mention other times when having constant visions of standing frozen in the creek where he and Leslie used to swing the rope to Terabithia. Jesse had to witness 'you-know-what' staring directly back at him, pointing its knife menacingly at his face, and grasping in one hand by its bloodied hair the wet rotting corpse of Leslie Burke. Then it would silently walk away, dragging Leslie along with it, disappearing into an unknown mist.

Dr. Sunderland saw that the young man was obviously tense. She had been treating Jesse for over the past ten years; the longest patient she has had on record. And she knew well enough of his guilt over Leslie, still lingering deep inside of his heart.

"What does this all mean?" Jesse asked, desperate for answers. "Who is this thing? Why is it in my dreams? Why is it after me and Leslie?"

Dr. Sunderland closed the art book and set it aside. She stared down at her written pad for a few moments, tapping her pen on her wooden desk, thinking for any possible explanations.

"Jesse…" she finally said. "…I can only speculate one thing. Perhaps maybe, and I do mean MAYBE, this thing, this 'you-know-what', this Pyramid Head if you want to call it, may have some kind of connection between you and Leslie. Has this Pyramid Head ever appeared to you before when you were a child, or even before you met Leslie?"

Jesse shook his head with certainty.

"I see." Dr. Sunderland thought, writing down more notes on her pad. "Well then, that might explain it."

"Explain what?"

"You tell me." Dr. Sunderland said, tilting down her glasses at him with a stern stare.

"Huh?" Jesse frowned.

"You tell me." Dr. Sunderland replied. "You're the longest patient I've had in all my career, Jesse. By this time, I think you're more than capable of finding the answers for yourself."

Jesse sat up from the couch, dropping Dr. Sunderland's teddy bear. He couldn't believe what his own therapist was telling him. "Doc, I've been coming to you at four o'clock for every other Friday afternoon. My family has paid you to help me put my life back together ever since Leslie passed away. And suddenly today, you're not helping me?"

Dr. Sunderland removed her glasses again and gently placed them on her desk. She had always been kind to Jesse throughout his agonizing years, getting to know all about his lonesome childhood, his special bond with Leslie, the extraordinary adventures he shared with her in Terabithia, and the grief he has had to endure after losing her. But she felt it was now time to be firm with him.

"Jesse, I can't be the one to solve all the problems for you forever. I'd like to see you fix this one out by yourself. There has to come a time when you have to move on, on your own." she let out a deep sigh, preparing to unleash some more harsh words. "Listen to me. You must let the past go. Some events can never be changed no matter how hard you try…nothing can be changed. You must let go of these thoughts of Leslie…because if you keep looking back at them, some day you just might end up in a lost tangled up world that you'd wish never existed."

Jesse remained silent, unable to fully comprehend Dr. Sunderland's strong advice.

"Whoa, I think we should call it a day." Dr. Sunderland said, inspecting her watch, realizing that their session had overrun ten minutes. "Just consider what I've said, Jesse. It'll help you find the answers you're looking for…in time."

Jesse finished his glass of water, grabbing his art book and then his raincoat from the coat hanger and shook hands with his therapist.

"Well…thanks for your time as always, Doc." Jesse said. "I appreciate it."

"Take care, Jesse. See you in two weeks." Dr. Sunderland smiled, waving at him as he walked out of her office.

…

It had rained all day today. It was about 6pm by the time Jesse returned to his dorm room. The rain clouds had arrived and he could hear the fierce rain pounding on his window.

Ignoring the lightning he heard from outside, he switched on his MacBook Pro to check his e-mail, while gazing down upon an old school photo on his desk. Upon the photo were Leslie Burke, himself and their music teacher, Miss Edmunds.

Jesse sometimes wondered where Miss Edmunds was these days. Of all the teachers Jesse had, Miss Edmunds was the only person who cared about him deeply and fully acknowledged his artistic talent. Jesse was afraid to admit it, but he still retained a small crush on her.

His phone rang when he received a new text message from one of his college mates. They were asking him to join them on another road trip starting this weekend. Although Jesse did enjoy travelling alone at times, he took no excitement in these crazy highway endeavors. Even if he was willing to go, he couldn't. For he already had made plans to visit his family. What's more, he much preferred to spend his time drawing more Terabithian artwork to post on his wall and/or Deviantart account.

Living in a single dorm room without a roommate would have seemed lonely for the students in his campus. But for Jesse, it was just right. Sadly, he had returned to his reclusiveness years after he left Terabithia and didn't hang around too much with his college mates.

There were no new messages in his e-mail account. So Jesse went to check his other mail that he collected earlier from the post. Most of it was junk with takeout delivery menus of Chinese, pizza and what not; they were really nothing much of interest. But it wasn't until he came across a white clean envelope, addressed to his name.

Jesse wasn't sure who would be writing to him at this time. It couldn't have been from his family since he was visiting them soon. But he was curious to find out who this mysterious writer was.

Tearing open the envelope, Jesse found a sheet of paper inside, written in black ink from a ballpoint pen. It said:

…

Dear Jess,

How have you been? I can't believe it's been years since I last spoke to you. It's been pretty quiet up here where I am. There isn't much to do, not many people to talk to. Everything kinda feels different when you're not around. It makes me wonder what you're up these days. Do you think you could drop by for a visit some time? It'd be great to see you once more before I leave again. Meet me in my 'special place'. And don't worry if you get lost finding me, I'll find you.

Sincerely yours,

Leslie Burke

…

What was this? Was this some kind of a joke? Who would be mad enough to write such a letter to him at this time? Jesse had no enemies in college. So there was no reason why any of the students here would pull such a mean prank on him.

Those were his initial thoughts after reading the letter. But then his hands began to shake nervously, when he discovered Leslie's signature on the sheet. There was no way anyone in the world could have forged that.

Jesse had received a letter from a dead person...except she wasn't dead. Even more baffling were the questions raised from what she had written. What on Earth did Leslie mean when she wrote '…before I leave again'? And what was this 'special place' that she was referring to?

There was no return address anywhere on the letter. There were no other contact details either. There was only a single name given to him at the top of the page, written in bold capital letters:

SILENT HILL

Silent Hill? Jesse thought for a moment. He had never heard of any place by that name.

Since his computer was on, this was a good moment to find out more about this 'Silent Hill' online. Jesse typed the name up on Google, but his search did not match any documents. He typed it up on Yahoo, but again, it revealed no results. He then tried Bing, Ask, AOL, Wikipedia and even Wikitravel…but found nothing relevant.

Jesse went over to his bookshelf and took out several travel guides based on the USA. He first checked Lonely Planet, but found nothing in the index. He then checked Insight Guides…and again, nothing. After clearing all the books he had and still with no answers, his last resort was to inspect the world map, which he kept above his bookshelf.

Jesse reached a hand to grab the map and unrolled it. After spending almost an hour checking every printed name on every country, including the USA, Silent Hill was nowhere to be found.

Just where was this Silent Hill?

…

It had been a while since Jesse was last home.

He received a warm welcome from his family from the moment he stepped in through the front door. Mrs. Aarons gave him a motherly hug, and then May Belle followed soon after with a sisterly one. Ellie and Brenda casually waved, though their attention was drawn more to the TV in the living room. Joyce Ann, the youngest of the family, was too busy to notice Jesse, tweeting with her friends on Twitter with her new iPhone.

Mr. Aarons approached his young adult son, arms folded. "It's good to see you again, Jess." he said with a firm smile and a nod. "C'mon, you must be hungry after that long drive."

He summoned everyone to the dining room, where a hearty meal was waiting for the family; roast vegetables, cream potatoes and rotisserie chicken…not to mention a huge bowl of Chinese egg fried rice, made especially by Ellie's new boyfriend, Kevin Liu. The gentleman was happily helping Mrs. Aarons assist with the cooking and serve the lunch table. Once everything was prepared, everyone sat down to feast.

"It's so nice on this rare occasion to have the family back together again." said Mrs. Aarons, passing the plate of cream potatoes around the table.

"Hey dad, how's work in the hardware store been?" Jesse asked.

"All the same." Mr. Aarons replied, munching down a huge chunk of carrot. "Folks say I'm gettin' too old for this job. Say I should quit. But you and I know that ain't never gonna happen as long as my heart's still tickin'."

"So Kevin." Mrs. Aarons said. "Where is your family from?"

"They're originally from Hong Kong." Kevin replied, offering some potatoes and vegetables to Ellie. "But my parents moved here to the States before I was born."

"You guys should see the stuff he can do on his computer. It's amazing!" Ellie interrupted, whilst pouring gravy on Kevin's helping of chicken. "He designed this computer animated character out of me, and it's so cute! I look just like something out of a Pixar or Dreamworks movie. You gotta see it!"

Kevin scratched his hair with embarrassment. "Well, it's just a doodle I did in my spare time. I'm still trying to break through to become a full-time animator in New York. It's tough living there, you know."

"Oh, Ellie's been telling me all about that." Mrs. Aarons chuckled. "But I can't thank you enough for looking after her so well in such a crazy city."

"Mom," Brenda murmured in her ear, "when do you think I'll find the right man?"

"In time, dear." she answered. "Don't worry so much. You just have to be patient and wait for the right time. It'll come."

Brenda moaned, feeling envious of her sister.

Jesse noticed that May Belle wasn't eating. She wasn't feeling hungry today. She was fiddling about with her fork, staring emptily at her plate of food in deep thought. She never thought that her life in high school would be harder than she anticipated, especially with her exams coming up next week. She was far too nervous to eat.

Long gone were the fond days she spent in the world of Terabithia once she reached her teens. Growing up truly sucked. Yet then again, like every growing person, she had to move on from this illusionary realm and serve her purpose in the real world. Besides, Jesse had to make that same choice when his time came to depart.

"Hey Jess, you ever wish you were back in Terabithia?" May Belle asked her worried brother.

"Yeah." Jesse said under his breath, slicing his piece of chicken. "I sure miss those old times."

Joyce Ann was minding her own business with her iPhone again, checking up on new messages from her Facebook account. Her chicken was getting cold, and this made Mrs. Aarons annoyed.

"Joyce, eat your food. You can talk to your friends later after our meal." she said in a strict voice. "And put your silly doll away from the table. Aren't you a little old to be still playing with that thing?"

"Mom, he's not a thing." Joyce Ann calmly objected. "He has a name. And it's Robbie, Robbie the Rabbit."

Joyce Ann had been keeping Robbie the Rabbit since she was five, taking it everywhere she went and sleeping with it almost every night. But now that she was a full grown teenager like May Belle, she was finding it hard to let go of it, even when her friends at school would pick on her and make jokes. Jesse on the other hand found the pink rabbit doll, dressed in brown overalls with a green bow tie, nothing but creepy with its elongated and somewhat demented smile.

It actually felt uncomfortable having Robbie on the family table. Jesse couldn't help but feel that he was being watched by it. But Joyce Ann reluctantly removed the doll and placed it underneath her chair.

"Dad, there's something I've been wanting to ask." Jesse asked him in a soft voice, hoping not to be eavesdropped by the rest of the family. "Have you or mom spoken to the Burkes lately?"

Mr. Aarons wiped his mouth with his napkin, pondering. "Can't say I have." he was honest to say. "But I'll tell you what. They were kind enough to send us a nice postcard last month. It's got their address written on it. I'll show it to you after we eat."

"Where do they live?"

"Not too far off from here. Why not pay them a visit, Jess, since you're around? I'd sure think they'd love to meet you again after this long."

…

"Afternoon, Mrs. Burke."

"Jesse, Jesse Aarons? Is that you?"

Jesse nodded with confirmation on the Burkes' doorstep. "That's me. We spoke on the phone yesterday."

An elated Mrs. Burke welcomed her guest with an amicable hug. She couldn't believe how mature Jesse had grown since the last time she saw him.

"It's so good to see you again, Jesse!" she cheered, guiding him to the living room. "I mean, look at you, all grown up now. Oh, time just flies by too quickly."

Mr. Burke was found sitting on his tidy couch, typing away on his laptop in the midst of writing a new novel. "Hey, Jesse. Long time no see." he stood up to greet him with a handshake. "My God, you've gotten tall."

"Thanks, Mr. Burke. It's great to see you too." Jesse replied. "How have things been lately?"

"Oh, fine. Fine as always. Say, would you care for some coffee or tea? I'm about to have a drink myself."

"Sure. Um, coffee would be nice."

Mrs. Burke disappeared into the kitchen to prepare the drinks for the two gentlemen.

"Please, sit down." Mr. Burke insisted. "So how are things going in college?"

Jesse sat down on an armchair so comfortable that he almost felt he was being eaten alive by it when he sank. The Burkes certainly knew how to keep their house pleasant and relaxing for their guests.

"Great. College is a lot of fun. A lot of hard work, but still enjoyable."

"Fabulous to hear. You know, it's become awfully quiet without Prince Terrien around this house. He would have been excited to see you."

Prince Terrien, Troll Hunter Extraordinaire, as he was called in Terabithia. Otherwise, he was the family dog of the Burkes, and a pet loved most by Leslie. It was sad for Jesse to hear from Mrs. Burke over the phone that Terrien had passed away just a few months ago. For such an old age, Terrien had certainly come a long way in life.

"Well, he's in a better place now, Mr. Burke." Jesse kindly assured him. "I'm sure wherever he is, Leslie's taking good care of him. I wouldn't worry too much if I were you."

Mr. Burke smiled, cleaning his glasses. There were still moments when he and wife would reflect on their daughter. They always wondered what she would have been doing with her life if she were Jesse's age now. They wondered if they would have still kept their relationship together if they ever had to separate ways.

"Mr. Burke," Jesse said after a few minutes silence, "do you mind if I ask you question?"

"Sure, why not?" Mr. Burke shrugged casually. "You know you can ask us anything."

By this time, Mrs. Burke reappeared in the living room, carrying with her on a tray two mugs of steaming black coffee, alongside another with herbal tea made for herself, a jar of milk and a bowl of brown sugar.

Jesse continued to speak. "Do you or Mrs. Burke know anything of a place called Silent Hill?"

Mrs. Burke stopped dead on her tracks when he uttered that name, while Mr. Burke froze as if he had just witnessed a ghostly apparition.

"I'm not sure if it's a town, a city or maybe a national park somewhere? But does the name ring any bells to you?"

At that moment, the tray from Mrs. Burke's hands slipped, causing the coffee and tea to spill, while the mugs and jar shattered and broke into pieces, and the sugar scattered all over their clean carpet.

Mr. Burke knew well enough that his wife was distressed. "Judy, try to stay calm." he asked her meekly.

"Did I hear what he just said?" she asked him back, her body trembling in fear.

"Judy, there's nothing wrong in-"

"Did he just mention that 'name' in our house?"

"Honey please, relax. He was only asking a question. He doesn't know anything about-"

"ANSWER ME, BILL!" Mrs. Burke snapped at her husband hysterically. "I thought you swore that we'd NEVER have to speak about that town ever again! Why the hell is he bringing this up all of a sudden?"

"I don't know, Judy." Mr. Burke replied, remaining as calm and collected as he could. "But I'm sure that he can explain."

"NO! I DON'T WANT TO HEAR IT!" Mrs. Burke blocked her ears, backing up against the wall. "Don't you even think about getting me involved. I told you once before already; I'M NOT GOING BACK THERE!"

"Jesse wasn't asking us to go back." Mr. Burke reassured his wife, begging her to calm down. "He wasn't asking us to go anywhere."

"I don't care." Mrs. Burke said, shaking her head, stubborn to unblock her ears. "Whatever this is about, I want you to take this conversation outside, Bill. You understand? You know damn well that I won't be a part of it!"

"Fine," Mr. Burke agreed, "I'll take Jesse outside and we'll talk about this on our own. You can stay here. Just calm yourself down and take a break while I'm gone, okay? I'll be back soon."

Jesse was speechless. He had never witnessed Mrs. Burke act crazy before in his life. Being apart of this frightening moment felt like being attacked by a stranger with a knife.

Mr. Burke kindly escorted Jesse out of the living room and through the front door, where they could talk privately in the open air, without any more sudden outbursts.

Jesse felt the need to apologize. "Mr. Burke…I'm sorry."

"Don't be." Mr. Burke replied. "I'm just sorry you had to see that happen. Judy always gets upset when you mention Silent Hill to her. She never wants to talk about it."

"Why not?"

"It's…complicated."

"Oh…"

"So tell me," Mr. Burke stared at Jesse straight in the eyes for the answer, "how do you know about Silent Hill?"

Jesse thought whether or not it would be right to show him Leslie's ghostly letter. But then thought that that would only frighten Mr. Burke. So instead, he resorted to telling a small lie.

"Well, Leslie used to talk a lot about it when we used to play together. She often said it was a neat place to visit and wanted to take me there one day. So I thought I'd check it out and drive up there myself one day to have a look."

"Is that so?" Mr. Burke said, raising his brows. Perhaps shedding some light about the town wouldn't hurt. "Judy and I moved to Silent Hill when we were expecting our first child, Leslie. It was a peaceful town with a friendly neighborhood, and we bought a nice house big enough for the three of us to live. Once Leslie was born, she fell in love with the place at first sight. She adored it. There wasn't a single day there when she would cry, feel scared, or even get mad. She was always smiling at her mother, cherishing every moment granted to her. Judy and I thought our home there would be perfect to raise our little girl. But just as it so happened, by the time Leslie reached the age of six, we were packing our bags and leaving…in a hurry."

A fascinated Jesse listened to every word Mr. Burke had to say, and he was desperate to hear more. "Leave? Why was that?"

"Well, as the years rolled by, Silent Hill…started to act strange, and so did its people. Everything around us changed and our lives no longer felt the same." Mr. Burke's voice began to shudder, unwilling to recall in detail about the 'memorable' experiences he had to endure during that painstaking period. "There was an awful lot of unusual activity going on there. And Judy and I weren't feeling comfortable with it. If I were you, Jesse, I wouldn't take any chance going up there. It's not a place for young eyes such as yours to see, believe me."

"What happened there, Mr. Burke?" Jesse wanted to know.

"What happened there doesn't matter." Mr. Burke insisted with a straight face. "Let me make it perfectly clear to you. That cursed town is NO place to be. It's nothing but abandoned and dried up with few people you don't even want to meddle with. You have no reason to risk your life over there for anything or anyone…"

"…except for Leslie." Jesse replied defensively. "Leslie always said that she wanted me to visit there one day, and now I know why. It's where she was born, where she grew up and where she spent her earliest childhood years. Even if the town is as dangerous as you say, it's still HER wish that I have to fulfill, Mr. Burke, can't you see? And you're the only person who knows the way."

If he were still eleven-years-old, Mr. Burke would have outspokenly said 'no' to Jesse, not willing to risk seeing another child lose his life carelessly. But now that a decade has passed and Jesse was a grown man, strong enough to fend for himself, there was no stopping his decisions once they were made. Jesse was more than determined to find Silent Hill, whether he would regret it or not.

"Please, Mr. Burke. You must tell me how to get to Silent Hill." Jesse pleaded.

Mr. Burke sighed, seeing no point in arguing any further. "Give me a moment to think."

He walked a few feet away, taking out a notepad and pencil from the pocket of his jeans. Gathering his thoughts and memories, he began jotting down notes, leaving Jesse to wait patiently. Jesse wondered what Mr. Burke was writing.

A few minutes passed, and Mr. Burke returned.

"Take this information with you and keep it safe." He said, handing over several written papers to Jesse. "They're all the directions that you'll need. They may be a little rough, but you should be able to reach your destination as long as you keep your eyes on the signs and know where you're heading."

Jesse didn't know how to repay him, except with a simple: "Thanks. I appreciate it."

"Nice car, by the way." Mr. Burke commented. "Where'd you get it?"

Jesse was standing behind his Audi R8, parked close by the Burke residence.

"My dad gave it to me as a birthday gift." Jesse replied, opening the door to his car and taking his driving seat. "I guess I should be off now. I'll be seeing you round, Mr. Burke. Take care."

Mr. Burke suddenly pulled against the door before Jesse could close it. It seemed he had something more to say.

"Jesse," he spoke harshly, "I'm doing this against my better judgment. But heed my warnings, because you may not like what you find there."

He gave a cold stare at Jesse, showing that he was dead serious about his words. Jesse willingly took his warning, but was not intimidated. With a firm nod, he turned the keys to start the engine, and quietly shut his door.

Mr. Burke waved at Jesse until he disappeared, bidding him a fond farewell. He wasn't sure if he'd ever see him again.

…

Author's Note: As usual, I welcome any form of constructive criticism. Whether you love it or hate it so far, please tell me. It's always a pleasure reading feedback. In the meantime, I'll see if I can get the next chapter up soon. May take a few weeks though.


	2. Chapter 2

Author's Note: Merry Christmas everybody! Hope you guys are having a good time with your families et al. Got the second part out for all of you to read. Feedback is greatly appreciated. Thanks, guys!

Disclaimer: BTT and Silent Hill belong to Katherine Paterson and Konami respectfully. 'Raindrops Keep Falling On My Head' belongs to Burt Bacharach respectfully. No profit is being made out of this work.

...

Chapter Two

…

By the following weekend, Jesse was well prepared for the long journey ahead of him. He had all the necessary instructions written by Mr. Burke to guide him to his destination. He had brought all the essentials with him; food, drinks, spare clothes, his iPhone, his wallet and for self defense, a baseball bat, which he borrowed from one of his college buddies.

It was about six in the morning when he first left campus. Four hours later on the highway, Jesse needed to take a short rest. And if he was going to do that, he might as well fill up the gas in his car, which was almost empty at this point.

Jesse read the road signs carefully for the nearest gas station ahead. Once he found it, he drove off from the highway and entered, parking his car at an available spot. It was time to fill her up.

Jesse stepped out and paid his cash at the machine, inserting the nozzle into the fuel tank. As he waited patiently, Jesse leaned against his car, looking round to observe other customers filling up their cars. It was then when he detected to his shock that the owner of a neighboring pickup truck was smoking a cigarette nearby the gas tanks.

"Hey, excuse me." Jesse interrupted. "I don't think you should be smoking that here. It's dangerous."

The owner turned her head round to reveal her face. It was a face that Jesse recognized almost immediately. Though it had been awhile since they last met, Jesse knew without a doubt that he was talking to his former school bully turned good, Janice Avery.

"Jesse? Is that you?" she asked timidly, lowering her cigarette.

Janice notably hadn't changed much since Jesse last saw her. She still retained her long messy dangling hair and she was still into her punkish/tomboyish attire. If anything different, she had grown slightly taller and had lost a bit of weight.

"Yeah, it's me." Jesse replied. "It's been a long time. I never thought I'd ever run into you here at a gas station, of all places. How are things?"

"Um…they're okay, I guess." Janice said, exhaling smoke through her nostrils as she rolled her eyes away. "How are things with you?"

"Meh, pretty much the same."

"Cool…um, yeah…"

She was rather hesitant to talk, given her shyness towards Jesse. She seemed nervous, and her cigarette wasn't helping her to settle down. Was there something more than this coincidental meeting that she was afraid of?

"So…where are you off to?" Jesse asked her amicably.

"To visit my mother." Janice replied in an assertive voice, but with a face relatively dubious. "She lives far away out of town. And I'm off to visit her for a few days. She's very sick."

"I'm sorry to hear that." Jesse said.

He was well aware about Janice's dysfunctional family, especially with her abusive father. She dropped out of school during the tenth grade due to depression. And nobody, even her closest classmates, heard much from her thereon, except rumors circulating that she had taken various jobs working at Mcdonald's, KFC and/or Starbucks. Not exactly the ideal kind of career Jesse would have pursued himself.

Since she was living under her father's wing, Jesse wasn't sure how often Janice had the opportunity to see her mother. But now seemed like the best time to visit if she really was that ill. Ill from what, who knew?

"Hey, what happened to your leg?" Jesse noticed Janice's black bruise on her left calf below her black leather skirt, concealed not too well by her fishnet pantyhose. "Did you fall down from somewhere?"

"Oh, no…it's nothing really." Janice replied, turning her leg round to hide her injury.

"Want me to call the nearest hospital for you?"

"NOOO!" Janice screeched at the top of her lungs, scaring the bejesus right out of Jesse. "I mean…no. That isn't necessary. I'll be fine." She said, shifting back to a calm but strict voice. "Besides, I hate going to hospitals. They make me throw up and the nurses freak me out all the time."

"Okay…er, are you sure?"

"Positive."

By now, Janice had finished filling up her truck with fuel. She removed the nozzle and prepared to hit the road. As she was heading back to her seat, Jesse noticed a large travelling suitcase at the back of her truck, and beside it, something hidden beneath a thick heavy blanket. It was hard to distinguish the shape, but for a glimpse, it was almost like that of a shotgun…but why would Janice be carrying a shotgun to her mother's place anyway?

Maybe it was just his imagination running wild. It could have well been anything under that blanket after all. Couldn't it?

"Sorry I can't stay and chat, but I have to keep moving." Janice said, adjusting her side mirror on the truck and relighting her cigarette. "It was cool to see you again, Jess."

"Yeah, and you too. Take care." Jesse replied. He was about to head to his car when he forgot to say something. "Oh, Janice?"

"Huh?"

"Your cigarette. You should put it out now before somebody catches you."

"Oops, yeah I forgot…sorry." Janice swiftly distinguished her cigarette flicked it onto her ashtray. "See ya round."

"Bye, Janice!" Jesse waved until she disappeared back on the highway.

…

A few more hours passed during the afternoon. Jesse was now driving across a high mountainous region. He was well aware that the temperature outside was dropping fast as he ascended further uphill.

The isolated route he was taking led him towards a metal bridge, stretching across an enormous gaping abyss. It was so deep that it was impossible for Jesse's eyes to make out what dwelled at the bottom. Regardless though, the bridge was still in fairly good condition and there was no trouble of making it across.

After reaching the other end, Jesse continued along the narrow path. It was until a few moments later, when he caught sight of a prominent sign besides the road. And Jesse knew undoubtedly, that he had finally reached his destination. The old rusty sign clearly read:

"Welcome to Silent Hill"

…

The heavy fog overshadowing the road was so prevalent that it clouded Jesse's vision. He wasn't sure if driving like this any further would be such a good idea. Fortunately though, there appeared to be some parking spaces ahead.

Jesse parked his car at an observation deck, locking the doors securely behind him as he stepped out with his knapsack. He went to overlook the panoramic view from the deck, which overlooked a huge lake surrounded by forest and a district, which must have contributed to the town of Silent Hill.

But of course, it was hard to see much from this view with the fog continuously rolling in. The wind was chilly, the clouds were calm, and there was nobody, not even a bird, in sight. Jesse wondered if he was the only visitor to come to this awfully tranquil town.

That tranquility was broken, however, when he heard distant music playing behind his ear. It was the sound of guitar strings, followed by a feminine voice, and a familiar tune that he had heard before from elementary school. Jesse wondered round the deck to locate the source…until he encountered a woman sitting alone on a wooden bench, singing the song:

"Raindrops keep falling on my head. And just like the guy whose feet are too big for his bed. Nothing seems to fit. Those raindrops keep falling on my head, they keep falling…"

Jesse couldn't believe it. The woman on the bench was his elementary school music teacher, Miss Edmunds. Like Janice before, her appearance hadn't changed very much. Although Jesse couldn't deny the possibility that Miss Edmunds had been working out, hence looking more physically fit…

"Jesse…?" Miss Edmunds tilted her head sideways for a closer inspection. "Jesse Oliver Aarons…? Is that…?"

"That's me, Miss Edmunds." Jesse confirmed with a humble nod.

"Jumping jelly beans." Miss Edmunds gasped, putting aside her guitar to greet her favorite student with an amiable hug. "What are YOU doing here?"

"I was going to ask you the same question." Jesse replied.

"My goodness, I haven't seen you for nearly a decade!" Miss Edmunds laughed. "You gotta tell me where you've been all this time!"

"In college…studying art…" was Jesse's simplistic response.

He was mesmerized by how stunningly attractive Miss Edmunds looked at her age. Mid-thirties around, Jesse couldn't steer his eyes away from her exquisite face and her elegant smile. Her distinctive aroma ran up his nose so penetrably that it made his heart pound. Would it have been wrong for Jesse to feel considerably…aroused?

"And…" Jesse hesitated, trying not to blush. "…what about you?"

"Nowhere special." Miss Edmunds casually shrugged. "Been trying to pursue a solo career in music. But as you might guess, I haven't had much luck so far."

"Oh…" Jesse hesitated again, thinking of another question to ask. "…and what brings you here to Silent Hill?"

"I came looking for my boyfriend, John. He lives somewhere around here but I haven't heard from him for over a week."

Jesse's heart rate dropped tremendously when he heard that.

"Oh, really?" Jesse asked lightly. "If you don't me asking, how long have you two been together?"

"A while." Miss Edmunds casually shrugged again. "But don't think for a minute that our relationship's been a walk in the park. Oh no, fact of the matter is, men can be com-pli-cated."

"Yeah, I guess." Jesse thought. "But I'll try not to be too complicated for you."

"Aw, Jess. That's a very sweet thing of you to say." Miss Edmunds smiled, offering him another amiable hug. "It mustn't have been easy for you these past years getting over the loss of your best buddy…God rest her pure soul."

Just like Jesse, she still held onto some of her angst regarding Leslie's passing. She sometimes wished she could have bought a spare ticket for Leslie to come join her at the art museum with Jesse, instead of allowing fate to drown her in a creek alone. She always regarded her as an incredibly talented and a uniquely imaginative child. And in truth, she cared dearly for Leslie as she much as she cared dearly for Jesse.

"But anyway…you haven't told me yet why YOU'RE here."

"Well, Les…" Jesse bit his lip before he could reveal Leslie's name. He couldn't tell Miss Edmunds about her letter. It would frighten her out of her Old Navy jeans. "I felt the need to have some time off from college and find a little place to relax and take it easy for the weekend. The academic work is really demanding, you know."

"Ugh, tell me about it." Miss Edmunds rolled her eyes, reflecting back to her years during college.

Jesse spotted a hunting rifle, sitting untouched on Miss Edmund's bench underneath her guitar.

"Hey, is that yours?" Jesse nudged his head at the polished gun.

"Yep, it sure is." Miss Edmunds confirmed. "Don't think I ever told you before, but hunting's always been a part-time hobby of mine for years. Keeps me on my feet and on the go. I heard this town can be pretty rough. And way up here, who knows what kind of animals could be meandering about? You should really keep an eye out, Jess."

"Don't worry, I am." Jesse assured her, turning his back to show the baseball bat sticking out of his knapsack. "I think I'll go and wander around a little here, if that's okay."

"No problem." Miss Edmunds replied. "You just remember to take good care of yourself. I'll be sitting here for a while if you need me."

"Got it." Jesse winked. "See ya later, Miss Edmunds."

"Be careful, Jess."

…

Jesse made his way towards the district he previously saw from the observation deck. It wasn't terribly far. Though when he arrived there, the stores were grimly quiet, not to mention the houses looking awfully uninhabited. The dominating fog didn't help lighten the mood either.

Leslie mentioned about meeting at a 'special place' in her note. But the question was; where was it? Jesse had neither a map to follow, nor any guide to read and hoped that maybe he could gather some clues by searching through the rural town himself and talking to people. But that simply raised another question; where was everyone?

"Hello…?" Jesse called out.

There was no response.

"Is there anyone here…?"

Still no response.

"HELLOOO!" he shouted as his voice echoed across the long empty streets.

Nothing…not even the rustling from a tree leaf.

What happened here? Wasn't there a single living soul? The wind began to howl as Jesse felt the temperature dropping. He wrapped himself warm in his hooded jacket, advancing onwards without fear.

It was when he was nearing a cross street that he sighted somebody in the vague distance, swinging joyously on a lamppost. It seemed to be a child…a girl, on closer inspection. Judging from her height, she appeared no younger than ten, though no older than thirteen. She had shoulder length hair, color of blond, and wore a bizarre combination of multicolored clothes.

She didn't notice her visitor approaching until she spun round. And that was the instant when Jesse was suddenly forced to utter:

"Leslie…?"

The playful child locked her hands behind her back and revealed a silly grin. "Hee-hee-hee!" she snickered at him.

"Leslie, is that you…?"

The child didn't answer, but turned her back and started sprinting away into the pale fog.

"Hey, wait! Come back!"

Jesse chased after her, block after block as she ran faster away giggling to herself. She was obviously having fun, but Jesse demanded that the child spoke to him. It didn't take long for her to vanish in the midst of the fog, her footsteps gradually fading…until the only sound Jesse could hear was his own panting.

Yet he was wasn't willing to give up. Jesse continued further on, entering into a lost suburban neighborhood. He was then abruptly halted when discovering a bottomless abyss at the end of the path. It was clear to note that everything in this town was in an incredible state of disrepair, let alone the cracked roads that dropped off to nowhere.

Regardless though, the child was nowhere in sight. Might she have been hiding in one of the houses? There were several, and Jesse was unsure to decide which one to inspect first. By the run down state of the area, he doubted that anybody was still residing here…right?

Not quite. For Jesse heard a faint hissing noise coming from near one of the abandoned houses. And right from the corner of his eye, he caught a quick glimpse a skulking figure, disappearing into a back yard through its wooden gate. Jesse felt the goose bumps on his shoulders.

No matter, he boldly followed the figure through the gate and walked into the back yard, where something there surprised him.

On a tiny chair sat a little girl, though not the same one that Jesse was previously after. She was far much tinier, somewhere between four and five at most. She was wearing a white party dress, with a clean pink ribbon on her head and bore curly chestnut hair reaching down to her shoulders. She sat motionless at a round table, set neat and tidy with plates, teacups and teapots served for all her invited guests; stuffed animal toys as a matter of fact.

Her back was faced against Jesse, who was feeling uncomfortable just standing around. Taking one careful step at a time, he approached the girl, hoping that his presence would not alarm her. Once close enough, he placed a hand on her shoulder, but in doing so, the girl's head leaned back…exposing her empty sockets where her eyes were meant to be.

Jesse gasped, stepping away from the horrible sight. It was soon that he noticed that the girl's eyeballs were floating in her cup of tea…tea mixed with blood to be more exact. The eyes of her stuffed friends had also been removed, and they too were floating in the cups of bloodied tea.

Then Jesse heard the hissing noise again. From behind the trunk of a nearby tree, the skulking figure he'd seen before stepped out. It was a creature that appeared human, but more inhuman with its mottled and gray skin. There was no face, no ears, no hair…nothing to tell about its character. It was armless, struggling while it walked as if being restrained by a straitjacket.

This creature, this Lying Figure if any name had to be given to it, certainly wasn't pleased to have Jesse in its vicinity.


	3. Chapter 3

Disclaimer: BTT and Silent Hill belong to Katherine Paterson and Konami respectfully. No profit is being made out of this work.

...

Chapter Three

…

Jesse reached a hand for his baseball bat as the Lying Figure lurched towards him. But as he did so, the creature expelled a large spew of acid from its chest, forcing him to leap aside to safety. The acid was so corrosive that it ate through the dead girl's tea party table within mere seconds.

It was time to act fast. Jesse clutched his bat firmly in his hands, battering up for a hard swing. A direct hit to its head and the Lying Figure staggered, remaining stunned long enough to give time for Jesse to make his second strike. He swung again, this time fracturing its neck, causing it fall to its knees sideways. Now rendered helpless, Jesse raised the bat over his head, ready to make the final blow.

Crack!

That was the sound Jesse heard when he shattered its fragile skull, disposing of the Lying Figure instantly. A splatter of its blood was stained on the bat that killed it, and some of it had managed to land on Jesse's clothes. But that was nothing to be worried about.

"What the HELL is this?" Jesse asked himself, nudging the dead creature's head with his shoe. "Is this some kind of a bad dream?"

He wasn't allowed to rest long, however, for then his ears picked up the screeching hiss of what sounded like another Lying Figure creeping by. Jesse had no reason to linger in the backyard any longer. He wasted no more time and ran back from whence he entered.

Much to his dismay when he stepped back onto the street, he found the neighborhood crawling with not one, but half a dozen Lying Figures. And with every passing second, more were emerging out from the fog. This was VERY bad news.

Yet like the zombies he had watched in Hollywood movies, he noticed how relatively slow the creatures walked. Perhaps if he escaped fast enough, he could save having to beat them all to death with his bat. But of course, it would still be impossible to avoid every single one of them because there were so many.

Jesse was willing to take that chance.

He made his run, swinging at the first creature in his path, knocking it aside immediately. Two more were waiting just beyond, but he carefully zigzagged his way through them before they could do any harm. One bypassing Lying Figure spat profusely onto Jesse's hooded jacket, forcing him to slow down.

Jesse stopped briefly to remove his burning jacket, tossing it away while the acid rapidly deteriorated the fabric. Another Lying Figure crept up behind him, but he heard it coming and spun round, smashing his bat hard against the creature's skull, causing a small portion of blood to splatter onto his face.

Three more were ahead, getting ready to spew at the same time. Jesse picked up the pace again, dashing past two of them at his sides and rammed his shoulder against the furthest one between them like a professional football player. The creature was pushed to the ground and Jesse trampled over it, crushing its head with his mighty foot.

Jesse sensed the Lying Figures falling behind as he gained more speed. And soon enough, he was far out of the suburbs before he knew it.

"Miss Edmunds!" Jesse thought, still moving on his feet. "I have to warn her!"

…

By the time Jesse returned to the observation deck, Miss Edmunds was nowhere to be found. It was as if she vanished right out of thin air. The only thing that remained on her bench was her guitar, now broken in half. But strangely enough, her hunting rifle was missing.

There was worse news though. Jesse found his car in a very different state from how he left it. It was sabotaged; its windows cracked, its tires burst and its engine smashed so severely that he was no longer able to shut the hood. In short, his Audi was screwed.

In spite of his concerns about Miss Edmunds' whereabouts, Jesse had the urge to leave Silent Hill. Not out of cowardice, but because he was desperate for outside aid in this godforsaken town; may it be from the police, the National Guard, the FBI…anybody. There was no way he could handle all the monsters plaguing the streets by himself.

There was no signal for his cellphone this high in the mountains, so contacting anyone was far out of the question. The only way Jesse could possibly seek help was to go on foot. And the only exit he knew out of here was through the metal bridge that he crossed earlier.

There was no other alternative. Jesse made a run for it downhill along the road that would lead him straight to the bridge.

…

Jesse was forced to come to a halt when he encountered the worst unimaginable thing to possibly happen. The bridge that was once there, had now collapsed, leaving nothing but the enormous gaping abyss to gaze down upon. An overcoming feeling of dread swept over Jesse…but he knew that giving up now would not help.

With no way out, Jesse decided to turn back, striding uphill armed with his bloodstained bat. He was going to venture back into Silent Hill alone to find Miss Edmunds, whether he would die trying or live to tell the tale.

…

Returning to the same district, Jesse felt a snowflake fall onto his hand. He wiped it away casually. But another one fell onto his nose, and then another.

Snow was falling out of the sky. The temperature was dropping lower than before. Jesse was beginning to feel extremely cold. But lucky (or unlucky) for him, there were Lying Figures roaming about to keep him steady on the move.

Jesse spared no moment to rest and ran his way through the unhappy crowds, avoiding more acid spewing and stopping occasionally to swing if any of them got too near him. It was fairly smooth sailing until he passed a couple of blocks. It was there he was met with something else unnatural.

Amidst the snow, hovering around the lampposts and dangling on the phone lines was a swarm of bat-like creatures of unnatural size. At first, Jesse thought they might have been the Hairy Vultures he fought against in Terabithia years ago, but they were far beyond those. Their bodies, especially their wings, resembled much like a bat's, and their beaks were the shape of pointed needles like that of a hummingbird.

Mothbats was the first name that crossed Jesse's mind at that point.

They were not blind to detect his unwanted presence. They flapped their wings fearsomely and buzzed about. And without warning, they swooped down upon their soon-to-be victim.

Jesse was ready for a fight. He swung his bat at the first Mothbat to close in, but missed as the creature predicted his move. It scratched his face with its beak, leaving a red mark on his right cheek. Jesse cringed, touching the minor scratch with his fingers.

The Mothbats didn't let him rest. Another one started pecking his hair from behind. Jesse swiped his arm at it, easily missing. It then pecked on his left ear, stabbing it a few times until it bled. Jesse warded it off with his bat, writhing in pain from the creature's pricks.

It didn't stop there. Four of them dived down at him simultaneously, eager to gauge out both of his eyes. Jesse defended himself, using one arm to keep them away from touching his face and using the other to swing constantly until he would hit at least one of them. The Mothbats were relentless and ganged up on him ferociously.

Jesse took a firm swing and finally succeeded in hitting one. With a little better aim, he continued to attack on in an attempt to rid the rest. The three remaining shortly fled after being overcome by his strength. Jesse looked down upon the injured Mothbat he hit earlier and saw it trying to drag itself away.

Taking no risks and despite being heartless, Jesse lifted his foot and crushed the escaping creature under his shoe. This only pissed off the others. It prompted them to initiate an all-out attack.

Jesse knew he was in trouble. He found the nearest building for shelter, Wood Side Apartment, and made a desperate dash for it. The Mothbats flew at him in retaliation, pecking on his hair and back repeatedly. The swarm increased in number as the sound of their buzzing grew louder.

But by miracle, Jesse reached the apartment house and flung its door open, slamming it shut right after he stepped in.

All was quiet again.

It was near pitch black in the cold and shabby building. It took a while for Jesse's eyes to adjust until he could make out the stairs just a fair distance ahead. The place felt like it was falling apart and looked as if it hadn't been renovated for years, let alone the torn up walls were crawling with cockroaches.

Nevertheless, the place seemed unoccupied. Jesse made his way towards the stairs, ascending up to the second floor. Perhaps he could find a room somewhere to take a break from all this madness.

Jesse took a step into the unlit hallway, making sure that there weren't any undesirable surprises waiting for him. It felt harmless enough; no hissing, no buzzing, no strange apparitions of little girls. He walked down door after door, undeterred by the claustrophobia he was sensing.

He suddenly paused when his ears caught the sound of running footsteps from the opposite end of the hallway. Somebody was here. Jesse gripped his bat once again, marching headlong until he reached an open door on his left.

Jesse crept inside. All of the windows in the room were boarded up, with hardly much light permeating inside. The attached kitchen was an utter mess, with unwashed plates and rusty pots and pans piled up on a dry sink. And the furniture was so filthy that Jesse was unsure if he wanted to rest on any of it.

But then he froze, when a rattle came from the bedroom just to his right. Jesse boldly entered, ready to beat the living crap out of whatever fiend was hiding from him. He heard the rattle again, and it was coming from the wooden closet. Raising his bat high in one hand and reaching for the closet doorknob with the other, Jesse took a deep breath, preparing for the kill.

As he calmly pulled the door open halfway, something fierce burst out from the closet, pointing to his nose the muzzle of a pump action shotgun.

Jesse could have dropped his bat scared stiff, but suddenly, he uttered the name-

"Janice?"


	4. Chapter 4

Disclaimer: BTT and Silent Hill belong to Katherine Paterson and Konami respectfully. No profit is being made out of this work.

…

Chapter Four

…

"Jesse?" Janice lowered her shotgun with a sigh of relief. "Goddamn, you scared me to death. I thought you were one of those THINGS out there."

"My words the same." Jesse said humbly. "What are you doing here?"

"I was lost." Janice said, dropping her shotgun on the bed and pulling out her suitcase placed underneath it. "I came here to ask for directions, but found the place deserted…until I bumped into 'them'."

There was no need to ask what 'them' referred to, since it was clearly obvious.

"I guess that's why YOU'RE here too?" she asked curiously.

"Uh…yeah." Jesse lied but nodded with agreement, afraid of telling her the real reason.

"Then it looks like we're both trapped in this crazy place."

"I can see that." Jesse said, watching Janice open up her suitcase and search through her possessions. "The bridge is out too, you know."

Janice sighed again, but this time with grief. "Well, that doesn't help."

"Hey Janice," Jesse asked with a question in mind, "you wouldn't happen to have seen Miss Edmunds around here, have you?"

Janice looked at him, her face dropping to a frown. "Miss Edmunds? You mean our old music teacher from elementary school? She's actually here?"

"Yeah, I saw her today when I arrived. She came here looking for her boyfriend, John. But I don't know where she is now."

"And I bet you're suggesting that we should go and find her?" Janice asked grumpily, having not shared the same close relationship with Miss Edmunds like Jesse had. But there was no reason for her to be unkind and say 'no'. "All right, we'll do it. But I don't think you'll get far in this town with just THAT."

Janice nudged her head at Jesse's bloodstained bat.

"You'll need something better." she went on, taking out a clean handgun from her suitcase, handing it over to Jesse. "Here, take this."

Jesse's eyes widened. He had never carried a firearm before in his life. "You're giving this to me? Where did you get it?" he had to ask.

"My dad's." Janice shrugged freely. "Don't worry, it's cool. He doesn't know I took it."

Jesse accepted the offering, mindful not to accidentally pull the trigger like some careless child would.

"Um…thanks." he said kindly. "But I'm not quite sure how to use one of these."

"You'll get the hang of it soon enough." Janice winked. She dug her hands back into her suitcase to take out more items to give to Jesse. "Take these, too."

It was a box of spare ammunition for his handgun and a flashlight.

"Thanks." Jesse said again, putting everything into his knapsack.

"Gee, looks like those monsters roughed you up really bad." Janice said, spotting Jesse's wounds on his cheek and ear. "Here, lemme take care of those."

She searched her suitcase again for a bottle of pure vodka and a pack of face towels.

"Oh no, it's okay." Jesse assured her. "I'll be fine."

"C'mon. This will only take a second." Janice insisted, soaking a couple of face towels with alcohol. "Just stand still and relax. This might sting a little."

Jesse did so, and cringed when he felt the wet fabric touch his skin.

"Ow!" he moaned.

"Relax, take it easy." Janice said. "Okay, now for next one."

She placed the other towel on his pecked ear.

"YEOW!" Jesse cried.

"Lighten up, Jess. I thought you were much tougher than this." Janice said, jabbing him on the shoulder and shaking her head in disbelief. "There, that should do it."

She then used the towels to wipe the sweat away from his forehead. It was clear to see how fatigued he was. It was best to call it a day for him after so many bizarre encounters.

"You look tired. Maybe you should take a rest." Janice suggested. "Take the room next door. Stay there for tonight. Who knows how early it gets dark around here? I'm sure those monsters will be running more rampant by then."

Jesse couldn't agree more. He was exhausted, and stepping out of the apartment house alone in the dark would be suicide. He thanked Janice for her kind hospitality and left, entering the unlocked neighboring room.

It was nearly identical to Janice's, save for the dirty dishes, pots and pans in her kitchen. There was an old dirty television sitting by the sofas, but it looked far beyond repair. The windows were boarded up all the same and the bedroom was as peaceful as it could be.

Jesse didn't bother to remove his shoes or pull up the blankets on his bed. He simply collapsed, falling fast asleep before he could count his own sheep. What a horrible day it had been…

…

During that night, Jesse was awoken by the haunting wail of an air raid siren, blaring in the distance outside his windows. It was too dark to see anything in his bedroom by this hour. He rolled over, reaching a hand out on the edge of his bed to find his knapsack. Once he found it, he zipped it open blindly to retrieve his flashlight and switched it on.

What he saw next made him jump in panic. The walls and floor appeared rusted and ruined, with blood smeared everywhere. Water was dripping onto his bed from a ceiling fan, spinning continuously in rapid motion. And as Jesse inspected the ceiling with a closer eye, he found it draped with human flesh.

Then, Jesse heard a loud crash coming from another room…followed by a moan that sounded anything but human. It was so terrifying that he let the flashlight slip out of his hands. The impact of the drop forced the batteries to fall out of their compartment, leaving the room dark once again. That was when he heard the heavy sound of heavy footsteps in the hallway...

Jesse dived onto the floor, frantically searching for his flashlight and its missing batteries. The footsteps continued, but only now, they were closer. They were followed by penetrating screeches of something metallic being dragged.

He then heard a door outside his bedroom creak open, as the footsteps came closer and closer. Jesse continued to look for the batteries as the footsteps went to his kitchen, went to his boarded up windows, and went to each part of his room until they came to a stop at his bedroom door. Then he heard the knob turning.

Jesse gulped, swallowing a lump of anxiety down his throat. However, the door did not open, as it was mysteriously locked, and thus his intruder was unable to enter. This bought more time to find the batteries and flashlight, though not for too long.

Something pounded on the door furiously. Jesse's legs were now shaking. `but just then, one of his hands touched upon a long object, which when lifted, had fairly great weight. It was his flashlight! Then his other hand touched upon two other objects that were small yet incredibly solid. It was the batteries!

The pounding refused to stop. That was until Jesse heard something smash through; it was the crippling sound of wood being splintered. Jesse placed the batteries back into the compartment, when there came a thunderous kick, smashing the door down completely.

Jesse switched on his flashlight, and there standing in his doorway, was Pyramid Head, pointing its sword-like knife at his face menacingly.


	5. Chapter 5

Disclaimer: BTT and Silent Hill belong to Katherine Paterson and Konami respectfully. No profit is being made out of this work.

…

Chapter Five

…

Jesse thought this was another nightmare. There was no possible way this could be real. His heart pounded faster than a beating drum as he felt an adrenaline rush within his quivering body.

Pyramid Head lurched towards him with its knife. Jesse leapt back onto the mattress to grab the handgun in his knapsack. His foe raised its knife for a first attack, ready to slice him in half like a fresh tomato.

Jesse rolled away, just in time before the bed was bisected clean in half. He pinned himself against the corner, aiming his handgun as his hand shuddered uncontrollably. Pyramid Head stepped forward, preparing its next move.

Jesse pulled the trigger of his handgun and fired a couple of bullets to its head, overcome by the impact. Unaffected, Pyramid Head swung its knife crossways to his neck. Jesse ducked with instinct, causing the blade to be wedged firm against the wall.

He fired again, this time with a better grip. Though he still inflicted no harm against his gruesome visitor. Its triangular shaped helmet served it well to be protected against bullets.

As Jesse continued to fire helplessly, Pyramid Head was tugging its knife from against the wall. With a hard jerk, it yanked it out and silently turned towards him. And then again, it lurched, raising its weapon for the kill.

Jesse was standing far too close in Pyramid Head's range, making him a sitting duck. As the knife descended down upon him, he made a sudden swerve. Luckily, he avoided having his head cut open. But the blade still managed to scar his left arm, tearing through his shirt and cutting his skin with ease.

He gripped his nasty wound as blood trickled down his arm, to his hand and along his fingers. This allowed Pyramid Head the perfect opportunity to strike its final blow. It raised its knife once more upon the defenseless young man.

Jesse was terrified.

Just then, a light emerged from the broken doorway. It was a light beaming from another flashlight attached to a shotgun, pointing directly at Pyramid Head's back at close range. Without warning, it fired.

Pyramid Head faltered from the massive blast, falling to one knee but still armed with its knife. Jesse drew his flashlight to the rescuer; Janice Avery.

"What are you gawking at?" Janice shouted, pumping her shotgun. "WE GOTTA GET THE HELL OUTTA HERE, NOW!"

The time was surely right, because Pyramid Head was standing up, unscathed. This only shocked Jesse, who found it hard to believe that anything could survive that last inflicting shot.

Janice fired again at its stomach, causing the walking behemoth to wobble back, stunning him momentarily.

"COME ON, LET'S MOVE IT!" Janice ordered.

Jesse rushed for the doorway and fled to the empty hallway. Janice led the way, taking aim at passing doors in case anything was to burst out from them. Jesse followed her closely, unwilling to look back at whatever might be chasing them.

Down they went along the stairs, to the first floor, and out into the open street, listening to the haunting wail of an air raid siren far away as they ran…

By the time they reached outside, night had suddenly turned to day. The rolling fog was still dominantly present, like it was literally part of the town. The snowfall had simmered down greatly, but there were still occasional snowflakes. For some reason, there were no Lying Figures or Mothbats about to scare Janice or Jesse.

The two of them paused in the middle of the street, baffled.

"Daytime already?" Janice scratched her head. "But just now, it was…how could this be…?"

She was more dumbfounded than him.

"Did you hear that siren a minute ago?" Jesse asked her. "I heard it the first time before that thing stormed into my room."

"Yeah…" Janice absentmindedly nodded. "…but if you're gonna ask me, I don't know what it was, okay? Who cares? All we should care about now is getting out of here FAST. I don't think I can stand a minute longer in this hellhole."

"Okay, but we still have to find Miss Edmunds."

…and Leslie. Jesse kept that in mind.

"FORGET ABOUT MISS EDMUNDS!" Janice roared, glaring at Jesse for a few hostile moments…until she slowly calmed herself down. "Sorry, Jess…I let my mind slip there."

"Is everything okay with you, Janice?" Jesse asked concernedly.

"Sure, everything's fine." Janice replied, taking a deep breath to release her stress. "Look, if we're gonna find Miss Edmunds, we need to be extra careful. Who knows when those monsters will be coming back, let alone that metal head that nearly cut you in half with its blade? Just what the hell was that anyway?"

"I…don't know." Jesse lied, reluctant to talk about 'you-know-who' at this point.

Janice saw the wound on his arm, and it didn't look like it was going to heal all by itself. "That'll need some medical attention."

Jesse looked at his torn sleeve and the dry blood running down to his fingers. "Yeah, you're right. We gotta find a hospital somewhere."

…

Janice remembered passing by a hospital yesterday, when she was being pursued by the Lying Figures. It was a relatively short distance away from Wood Side. It didn't take her long to locate it.

"Here it is." Janice pointed to the written sign on the main entrance doors. "Brookhaven."

It looked more like a psycho ward, a mental institution, judging from its unfriendly architectural demeanor. Jesse was uncertain about going inside. He couldn't imagine what kind of hideous atrocities awaited him behind that entrance.

"Are you sure this is safe?" Jesse hesitated uncomfortably. "Isn't there another-"

"A hospital's a hospital, Jess!" Janice huffed, tugging on Jesse's shirt. "There's no other place we can go. Just get in there and do what you have to do."

"But, aren't you coming?"

"Pfft, are you crazy? Of course I'm not going in there!" Janice denied. "Hospitals gimme the willies! Didn't I tell you?"

"Oh yeah, I forgot." Jesse said, remembering the conversation they had at the gas station.

"It's always been like that since I was a kid." Janice explained, her eyes recalling painful memories from her past. "My dad used to beat me up so badly sometimes that I had to be treated into hospital. Mom would always made up stories about me having accidents. She never told anyone about my dad. It went on for years. All those medicines, all those pills, all those nurses…it just makes me sick…"

To think that Jesse used to complain about his own father as a kid, that was nothing compared to Janice's troubled family history. Having known her since the fifth grade in school, he took full sympathy for the girl. "Okay Janice, I understand. You can stay here." he said, taking his gun out of his knapsack. "Just wait. I promise I won't be long."

He climbed halfway up the stairs to the hospital, when Janice suddenly called out to him: "Wait, Jess. There's something else I wanna give you."

Jesse turned back to see Janice handing him a handheld transceiver, a walkie-talkie. It was small but he knew it was essential in case one of them were to get lost or were in need of aid. He gladly accepted it and placed it safely in his pocket.

"Thanks for saving my life, Janice. I owe you." Jesse offered her a friendly handshake.

"Don't mention it."

…

Jesse crept through the unlocked entrance doors, shutting them carefully as he stepped into the unlighted reception. The power in the building was out, not surprisingly, since he knew by now that the whole town was lacking in electricity. This seemed like the best time to use the flashlight.

Jesse wandered through the narrow corridor of the first floor, his flashlight in one hand to guide the way and his handgun in the other in case of any beastly encounters. The gloomy hospital was abandoned, scattered with broken wheelchairs and empty gurneys. Much of the walls were covered in tarp, while boxes and other material blocked several doors. There were also strange voices whispering along the corridor. What they were saying was beyond understanding, but made Jesse feel unwelcomed.

Just then, Jesse was startled when he heard glass shattering further up ahead. He trembled…maybe it was a good idea to turn back now…or maybe it was better to march on and find out what the source of the noise was. He valiantly chose the latter.

He came across a storeroom with its door flung wide open. Jesse raised his gun and stepped in. With his flashlight, he searched the floor first, discovering a broken jar of tongue depressors. Something was definitely in here.

Jesse searched the shelves next, row by row, hoping that whatever was responsible for knocking the jar out of its place was a mere rodent, or else small in size. He stopped when his eyes caught sight of a roll of plaster, sitting on the third shelf unused. This was just what he needed for his arm.

He grabbed the roll from the shelf and helped himself in wrapping the plaster round his injury. Whilst doing so, however, he failed to notice a figure approaching him through the shadows. The figure raised its gun and placed it gently at Jesse's nose, causing him to freeze at instant.

"Jesse…" A familiar voice spoke.

Jesse shone his flashlight at the figure's face. It was Miss Edmunds. She lowered her rifle and hugged him with comfort.

"Miss Edmunds," Jesse said, hugging his former teacher in return, "thank God you're alive. I was worried about you."

"Me too." Miss Edmunds replied, wiping the sweat from her face. "When I saw those monsters coming after me, I ran for my life and took shelter in this hospital."

"Did you find John yet?"

"Umm, who…?" Miss Edmunds asked.

"Your boyfriend, John? Did you find him?"

A confused Miss Edmunds paused for a second, biting her lips. "Oh…um, sorry but no, I still haven't found him." she replied with uncertainty. "But I'm praying he's still all right…"

Before she could say any more, Jesse's walkie-talkie buzzed.

"Jess?" Janice's voice emitted from the speaker. "Jess, are you still there? What's taking you so long?"

Jesse picked out his walkie-talkie and responded: "Yeah Janice, I'm here. I have some good news. I found Miss Edmunds."

…

A brief reunion occurred outside of the hospital…

"Janice, been a while." Miss Edmunds greeted her on the sidewalk. "How's the world been treatin' you?"

"Meh…" Janice wasn't in the mood for much social talk. There were bigger things going on that they had to deal with. "…so-so. But I'm handling it."

"Good to hear." Miss Edmunds said, polishing her rifle. "You know what, I think it's far from coincidence that the three of us are here. It feels as if something may have summoned us."

"Well, now is not the time to worry about that." Jesse said, gulping down a full bottle of water. He hadn't drunken for a whole day. "Janice, you said there was something important you wanted to tell me?"

"Yeah," Janice nodded, "I was doing a little search and I found that there's a place north from here up ahead, at the end of the road by the lake, called Rosewater Park. I didn't walk in, but I thought I heard a voice there. It might be worth checking out."

"Maybe somebody's there who can help us." suggested Miss Edmunds.

Jesse was skeptical. It was unclear to say who or what was wondering in that park. It could be some survivor trapped in this unpredictable town like them, or it could be another devious monster.

"I'm not sure. But either way, I think we'll have a better chance of finding people and seeking a way out of here if we split up. Janice, why not go with Miss Edmunds and explore the rest of this town together? I'll be heading into the park myself to investigate that voice."

Miss Edmunds lifted her brows, worried for Jesse's safety. "Are you sure of that? Shouldn't at least one of us come to protect you in case something happens?"

Jesse waved his walkie-talkie at her, ensuring that he knew what he was doing. "You needn't worry about me, Miss Edmunds. I'll be cautious. But if there's any trouble, I'll give you a buzz."

"All right then, Jess." Miss Edmunds loaded her rifle, gung-ho for action. "Janice and I will let you know if we find anybody…if there IS still anybody around."

"Let's do it." Janice pumped her shotgun. "I ain't afraid of any goddamn freaks."

"Stay alert!" Jesse warned the girls. "Catch up with you later!"

And with that said, the three of them embarked on their separate ways…

…

Rosewater Park seemed harmless enough, despite its lack of charm. There stood a few memorials, but otherwise nothing much of interest. Jesse remained silent, hoping to catch the voice Janice mentioned about earlier.

It took a while, but then Jesse faintly heard the voice of a child, laughing playfully somewhere in the distance. It seemed to be coming from further beyond where the lake was. He rushed down the stairs and headed towards the lakeside.

The fog simply refused to blow away. It would have been impossible to even enjoy a gorgeous view of the lake if Jesse was strolling at leisure here. He continued listening to the child's voice…and he was getting closer.

He hurried along the path of the lakeside. Closer and closer he came…faster and faster he sped…until he happened upon a young girl with shoulder length hair, color of blond, with her multicolored clothes. It was the same girl he had seen yesterday on the street.

She was alone, skipping stones by the bar fence, humming to herself merrily. Jesse took a break to catch his breath by an empty food stall, before advancing. But the girl already noticed him, tilting her head sideways in a curious manner.

She didn't try to run away this time. When Jesse finally approached the girl up close to examine her better, he couldn't believe his eyes. The first words to come out of his mouth were:

"Leslie, it's you!"

"HUH?" the girl responded, her face dropping to a frown. "Who's Leslie?"


	6. Chapter 6

Disclaimer: BTT and Silent Hill belong to Katherine Paterson and Konami respectfully. No profit is being made out of this work.

…

Chapter Six

…

"You're…not Leslie?"

"Course not. But if you must know, my name is Laurie." corrected the girl.

"L-Laurie?" Jesse asked puzzled, uncertain of how to respond. "But…you look just like her. Your face, your hair, your voice, your clothes…"

Not quite her clothes to be honest. Though they bore similar colors, Laurie's appearance seemed more flamboyant and revealing than Leslie's. She wore a pink short-sleeve t-shirt that had a heart pieced with a cupid's bow. She wore a flashy blue denim jeans miniskirt, held by a black leather belt. She wore a shining pair of rainbow tights along with a pair of loose socks and finished off with a pair of red sneakers.

She also wore arm bracelets, a pair of flower earrings and a few finger rings…things that Leslie would never been seen with.

"…and your eyes." Jesse stared into Laurie's eyes…only to find that they were not the same hazel blue of Leslie's, but were instead jade green. "No…forget about those. But still, I can't believe how much you resemble her. Could you possibly be her relative…or even her long-lost sister?"

The girl frowned again, placing her hands to her hips. "Wait a second, who are you talking about?"

"Leslie." Jesse replied. He began shaking his head, assuming that Laurie was just a mere hallucination. "Are you some kind of a ghost?"

"Do I look like a ghost to you?" Laurie smirked, giving Jesse a twirl. "If I was a ghost, could I still do this?"

Laurie took the liberty to kick Jesse's shin mischievously.

"OW!" Jesse cried.

"HA-HA! I gotcha!" Laurie taunted.

"All right, all right. You're NOT a ghost. Sheesh…" Jesse insisted, rubbing his sore leg. It was clear now that this girl wasn't Leslie, judging from her cockiness and childish personality. "Look, listen to me. Have you seen anybody around here by the name of Leslie Burke?"

Laurie locked her hands behind her back and started spinning round in thought. "Mmmm…nope. Who is she?"

"She's my…well, used to be my girlfriend." Jesse reached for his pockets to take out a folded envelope. "I got this letter from her recently, asking me to come here to a 'special place'. But the strange thing is…she's been dead for ten years."

"Oh, I love ghost stories!" Laurie clapped her hands together with excitement. "That's kinda creepy, but finding this 'special place' sounds like Easter egg hunting as well! Can I come and join you?"

Jesse wasn't so sure if he needed a child tagging along with him, let alone a bratty one who just kicked him for fun. "Um…maybe it's best if you didn't."

"Aw, c'mon! It'll be fun with the two of us!"

Jesse disagreed. This was a personal matter that Laurie wasn't taking seriously. Explaining everything about Leslie to her would only be wasting time. He shook his head firmly and started to walk away.

"Go home, kid." Jesse snorted. "You're not helping me."

Laurie scowled, stamping her foot with frustration. "My name is NOT 'kid' by the way, it's LAURIE! And just for the record, I don't have a home!"

Jesse halted, looking back at the child's angry expression, which then transformed into a worrisome one.

"You heard me, didn't you? I don't have a home." Laurie reiterated somberly. "I don't have any parents, I'm alone. Everybody's gone."

"So why are you here?" Jesse asked.

"I…don't know." Laurie said, fiddling with her fingers with a disconcerted look. "Please don't leave me alone with those scary monsters out there. I'm afraid they're gonna eat me."

There was no time to argue with her or doubt anything she had claimed. Finding Leslie was the most important objective for him right now. And even though Laurie might slow his progress, it would be too cruel to leave the child defenseless against the town's monstrosities.

"Fine, you can come with me." Jesse agreed, offering his hand to her.

Laurie leapt with joy and performed a little fairy dance.

"But you have to promise to keep up and not doing anything stupid, okay?"

"Okay-dokey." Laurie winked and skipped towards Jesse leaving the park. "By the way, what's your name?"

"…Jesse."

…

Jesse had anticipated much worse than he expected when walking back along Silent Hill's streets. The grotesque monsters of yesterday were gone, as if evaporated into the fog. Yet he still remained vigilant, clutching his handgun and keeping his eye out for Laurie.

"Hey, Jess. Tell me about Leslie." Laurie asked, dancing along the sidewalk and waving her arms about. "How long were you two together?"

"A short while." Jesse responded, checking the corner of each block to ensure the coast was clear. "But that seemed like an eternity to me."

"So how did you two play when you were small like me?" Laurie questioned on. "Get up to anything cool?"

"You wouldn't understand." Jesse responded, unconvinced that Laurie would believe anything he'd say about Terabithia. "It was just me, her, the woods, our tree house and our own imaginations."

"Oh, I get it." Laurie giggled when a filthy image flashed into her mind. "I know where this is going. So I suppose you and Leslie were intimately related, hmm? Wanted to share some private time together…a little tete-a-tete if you know what I mean, huh?" she let out a cheeky grin.

"Wait." Jesse paused, looking at Laurie suspiciously. "What are you implying?"

"Jesse, what was it like sleeping with a girl?"

That infuriated him. Jesse grappled Laurie's shirt and lifted her off the ground ferociously. He couldn't tolerate such crudeness from a punk girl.

"DON'T YOU DARE TALK ABOUT LESLIE THAT WAY!" he exclaimed, his face boiling with rage.

"Okay, okay, okay! I'm sorry!" Laurie confessed. "I was just kidding! You don't have to get all sore! Please, just put me down!"

"That WASN'T funny what you said!" Jesse continued to yell.

"Hey," Laurie pleaded for mercy, "I said I was sorry, okay? I won't ask you again, I promise."

"You better not." Jesse warned her, settling her down.

Laurie tidied up her t-shirt and straightened her hair. "Look, Leslie's gotta be somewhere here. I mean, who else could have written that letter anyway?"

"No one." Jesse replied, unfolding the signed paper to have another read. "This was Leslie's all right. I know that for sure. We just gotta keep looking for any possible clues that might point us to her 'special place'."

The two of them stopped when they stumbled across a burger cafeteria, called Happy Burger. Though it seemed pretty run down, Jesse's stomach was growling. He hadn't had a bite since he arrived in Silent Hill. It probably wouldn't hurt if he took a break and had something to eat to refill his energy.

"Don't tell me you're thinking about eating THERE." complained Laurie in disgust. "That stuff tastes SO gross! EEEW!"

"Not feeling hungry today?" Jesse asked.

"You can go in if you want." Laurie said, turning away with crossed arms. "But as for me, I think I'll stay put."

"It's dangerous out here, you know." Jesse reminded her earnestly. "I wouldn't want you to get hurt…or even worse, eaten."

Laurie scoffed at that remark. "HA! That doesn't scare me. I ain't afraid of anything!"

"Really?" Jesse raised a brow. "You seemed rather shaken when I was about to leave you in the park."

"Well, that was…different." was Laurie's lousy excuse. "I was alone then. But now that I have you protecting me, I have nothing to fear!"

"Fine, suit yourself." Jesse shrugged, making his way to Happy Burger. "Just yell if something's wrong, okay? I won't be long."

Laurie gave the A-OK sign and winked.

…

Something tasty was grilling when Jesse entered through the doorway. The fresh smell of sizzling meat whisked up his nose so fast that he was already dying to nibble on one. Inside he saw Miss Edmunds already seated at a table, adding a small portion of ketchup and mustard to her cheeseburger.

"Hey," Jesse waved at her, "what's cooking?"

"See for yourself." Miss Edmunds pointed her thumb at Janice in the kitchen, frying several meat patties on the grill with a spatula. "Janice makes the BEST damn burgers I've eaten. You gotta try some."

Miss Edmunds handed Jesse a spare hamburger on the table. He unwrapped it and took a big bite. It was wonderful to taste food again.

"That's…amazing!" Jesse said.

"Thanks." Janice smiled. "Looks like my work experience in McDonald's actually paid off. Making hamburgers is a cinch once you get the hang of it."

Jesse sat down to indulge in his much deserved meal. "So, had luck in finding anybody yet?" he asked.

"Zilch." Miss Edmunds replied, sipping on her soda drink. "This town is run dry. But keep your wits up, because Janice and I keep hearing weird noises every now and then. It must be those monsters sneaking around again."

"Will do." Jesse nodded, until his eyes noticed an insect crawling up Miss Edmunds' sleeve. "Careful, Miss Edmunds, but it looks like one of those monsters is after your food." he joked.

Miss Edmunds inspected her shoulder to find a hungry cockroach staring back at her, raising its antennae.

"AAAAH!" Miss Edmunds screamed at the top of her lungs, flapping her arms about like a headless turkey. "GET IT OFF! GET IT OFF!" she yelled, swiping the filthy insect away.

The cockroach flew away and landed safely onto the kitchen floor, where Janice gladly crushed it under her boot.

Jesse had stopped chewing after witnessing that sudden event. "Miss Edmunds…are you okay?"

"Yes," Miss Edmunds panted, tidying her hair and returning to her seat, "I'm fine. I just…I just loathe cockroaches, that's all. Sorry, I didn't mean to scare you."

"So Jess," asked Janice, grilling her last patty, "Did you find out about that voice in the park?"

"Um, no…" Jesse replied. He was afraid to reveal Laurie at this time, since her remarkable similarities to Leslie would only disturb them…and there was enough in town to be disturbed by already. Whatever the mystery behind Laurie, Jesse felt he had to solve it himself. "…it was just the wind."

"Damn, that sucks." Janice rolled her eyes, taking a bite out of her burger. "I thought we were one step ahead of getting out of here."

"Janice and I will be heading to a place called Toluca Prison. It's a part of Silent Hill that we haven't yet covered." said Miss Edmunds, practicing her aim with her rifle. "Won't be easy wandering round in there in the dark, but we ain't scared."

"Damn straight." Janice agreed. "We'll call you if we need any help."

"All right," Jesse said, wiping his mouth with a napkin, setting to leave. "you do that. I'll continue searching the rest of town. Keep on watch, girls!"

…

Back outside, Jesse found Laurie sitting on the sidewalk in a fetal position, pondering about something.

"Hey," said Jesse, "sorry to keep you waiting."

"Jess," Laurie replied, "I was thinking about Leslie. You said you were looking for her 'special place', right?"

"Um…yeah, why?"

"I have another question. Was she born here?"

"Um…yes."

"And did her family used to live here?"

"Yeah."

"Then maybe her 'special place' is her old house."

"Hmm…that might be our answer." Jesse replied, thinking about it clearly. "But how do we know where to find it?"

Laurie crossed her arms and frowned. "D'uh! Are you dense? Try the hospital! They're bound to have her birth records somewhere, and maybe her address."

Of course! Why didn't Jesse think of that sooner? Brookhaven Hospital must have kept Leslie's birth certificate somewhere, and details of where she used to live in Silent Hill. There was no more time to waste. They had to get moving.

…

Returning to Brookhaven was as unnerving as the last visit. Laurie stuck close to Jesse as they entered the reception area. A stairway could be seen a short distance away.

"There has to be something more upstairs." said Jesse, pointing his flashlight towards the empty stairs. "Let's go the second floor."

Laurie obeyed, following Jesse upwards. But by the time they reached it, a sickly feeling suddenly overwhelmed her. Her head began to heat up, and she was slowly losing consciousness. Jesse wasn't blind to notice it when Laurie's eyes began falling.

"Laurie, is something wrong?" Jesse asked her.

"I'm feeling dizzy." Laurie murmured, grabbing her burning forehead. "Is there a place I can rest somewhere?"

Jesse looked around the hallway. It was fortunate enough that there were no monsters in the hospital…so far. He searched the nearest door and opened it, leading him into a windowless bedroom. There was hardly any light inside, but the clean bed appeared comfortable enough.

"Rest here." Jesse guided Laurie to the bed. "Are you sick?"

"I don't think so." Laurie answered. "I may have overworked myself in the park. I hope I'm not catching a fever."

"Well, if anything, I'm sure it isn't serious." Jesse said, handing over his flashlight to her. "Take this, you'll need it. I'm going to look round this hospital to find what I need. I'll be back for you soon."

"Jess, wait." Laurie tugged on his shirt. "Aren't you gonna sit here and take care of me? Don't you wanna talk for a bit?"

"Laurie, listen." Jesse sighed. "It's not that I don't care about you, but I need to find Leslie, it's important. Please rest here in the meantime. I'll return to get you once I have everything."

Laurie looked afraid, almost as if she was going to die. But nevertheless, she trusted Jesse's words. "Well…okay, but don't leave me here too long."

"I promise. I won't."

…

Now without a flashlight, Jesse had to resort to using the light from his iPhone. After searching every room on the second floor thoroughly with no material, he decided to ascend to the third floor. Again, it was devoid of any monsters.

Just a few doors ahead was the medical office. Jesse made his way in. Inside were only dusty tables, broken chairs and shattered glass cupboards, and not even a mouse in sight. Jesse checked every drawer, every cabinet he could find containing records of patients attended to Brookhaven.

After about five minutes of scouring, Jesse found the compartment he sought. He flipped through the names placed in alphabetical order…until he came across Burke's name. The dossier contained Leslie's birth certificate written in clear details…and most importantly, a signed form with her address written on it.

Bingo.

Jesse now had what he needed. He made his way out of the office and back to the hallway. But the instant he stepped out, a siren wailed from outside. It was the same one he had heard back in the apartment.

The light on his iPhone switched off. For a few dark moments, it seemed dead. Jesse whacked his phone to get it functioning again. It flickered, until it finally returned back to normal.

But something was different, VERY different. Not only were the walls now smeared with blood like in the apartment, not to mention the floors replaced with rusted grid platforms, but Jesse's walkie-talkie was emitting static, alerting him that he was not alone. Numerous nurses stood before him…and they didn't appear all that hospitable.

They wore low-cut blouses and had several of their buttons undone, revealing their cleavage. They kept their faces down to the ground, their heads swollen and covered in gauze, making them look almost like bubbles. They approached Jesse with scalpels and steel pipes, twitching and convulsing violently, as if they were about to burst.

Jesse knew it was time to use his handgun, ready to take the Bubble Head nurses on.


	7. Chapter 7

Disclaimer: BTT and Silent Hill belong to Katherine Paterson and Konami respectfully. No profit is being made out of this work.

…

Chapter Seven

…

He fired his first shot at a nurse's chest. It didn't have much affect. She swung her arms violently, almost as if blind. The nurses became more agitated the more Jesse fired his gun.

One of them swiped her scalpel near Jesse's throat. Jesse shot her point blank on the head, killing her instantly before she hit the ground. The sound of his gunfire only attracted the nurses of his position.

Two more nurses confronted Jesse, both wielding steel pipes. One swung horizontally, the other vertically. Jesse timed his moves carefully and avoided being struck. He ran past them, not willing to waste his ammunition.

Another was waiting ahead, raising her scalpel murderously as her body twitched. Jesse pointed his gun and blew a hole right at the center of her brain. She fell backwards and tumbled down the stairs. Jesse hopped over the corpse, making his way to the second floor to retrieve Laurie.

During his descent, he nearly lost his balance when he encountered more nurses on the stairs, crawling on their elbows and knees like insects. They tried to grab his legs, but Jesse was quick and nimble, hurdling past them, firing when needed.

More nurses awaited on the second floor, some of them pointing revolvers at him. Jesse took no time for a breather. He scampered past his foes; ignoring the sound of the blasts from their guns as the bullets hit the wall.

He burst into the room where he left Laurie, shouting: "Laurie, we have to-"

But then he paused when he found the bed empty…with no sign of the young girl anywhere.

"Laurie…?" Jesse exclaimed, searching under the mattress. "Laurie, where are you?"

He couldn't dilly-dally for long. The nurses picked up Jesse's voice and were nearing his location fast. He reluctantly left the room, dashing down the stairs to the first floor, whilst eluding the crawling nurses stalling him.

"Laurie…?" Jesse called out when he reached the first floor. "LAURIE!"

He failed to notice a figure emerging from underneath the stairwell, slowly creeping up behind him. Jesse jumped when something cold touched his hand.

"JESSE!" Laurie's voice cried out from the dark.

Jesse drew his phone upon Laurie's distressful face. "Laurie," he sighed with relief, "thank God you're okay. I was worried about you."

Laurie pounded him on the shoulder aggressively. "DON'T YOU DARE LEAVE ME LIKE THAT AGAIN!" she cried out. "I was so scared that I had to flee for my life! Why didn't you come rescue me, HUH?"

"I'm sorry. I didn't know that-"

"Know what? That there are crazy nurses here who come right out of nowhere screaming for your blood?" Laurie roared out, looking at Jesse adversely...until her face dropped into a sorrowful expression. She leaned towards, wrapping her arms around him in a warm embrace. "Jess, don't leave me…you're the only person I know who can protect me. Just don't do that again, okay?"

"I won't." Jesse replied softly.

He had wished they could have a quiet moment of comfort together. Unfortunately, they were put off when Jesse heard the familiar sound of something metallic being dragged on the floor. It was the same sound he heard from the apartment last night…and it was close.

Jesse flashed his phone behind Laurie, to find Pyramid Head raising its knife threateningly.

"LOOK OUT!" Jesse took Laurie's hand and pulled her away before Pyramid Head could swipe her. "THIS WAY, C'MON!"

Jesse led the way to the entrance of the hospital, pushing away the nurses that intruded. But when he reached the handles, he discovered the doors locked. This was an awfully bad sign.

They had to find another route to escape. Jesse barged his way again into the gang of nurses blocking the narrow hallway. One of them tried to stab Laurie with her scalpel, but Jesse fired his gun to her head. All the while, Pyramid Head pursued them, smacking away the annoying nurses as he gained on them with his heavy footsteps.

Jesse was desperate to find an exit. He didn't notice his hand slipping out of Laurie's. And before he realized, Laurie lost her hold from him and fell. Jesse tried to turn back…but by then, more nurses had emerged from the doors, causing a massive blockade.

"Laurie, get up!" Jesse shouted.

Laurie was about to do so, but felt the icy grip of Pyramid Head when it grabbed her ankle and yanked her back fiercely.

"WAIT!" Jesse cried, reaching his hand out for Laurie, who was being dragged away. "LEAVE HER ALONE!"

Laurie squirmed and screamed, scratching her nails against the floor. She tried grabbing onto wheelchairs, gurneys and trashcans, but they were of no use. Pyramid Head stopped and looked down upon the bewildered Laurie, weeping in fear before its presence. It decided to raise its knife again, ready to execute her.

"NO, STOP!"

But he was too late. Pyramid Head plunged its knife as the blade pierced through the poor victim's chest. Laurie wailed in unbearable pain…and choked when a stream of blood escaped from her mouth…before finally going limp.

"LAURIIIIIEEEEE!"

Jesse yelled in a fit of rage. He ran towards his adversary and packed every bullet against Pyramid Head, who remained standing dominantly over the slain child. Of course, it did nothing as its helmet offered protection.

The siren from outside wailed again, putting Jesse off his aim. He failed to notice the dead body of a nurse on the floor and accidentally tripped over it. By the time he hit the ground, everything surrounding him had changed.

The nurses, Pyramid Head and Laurie had vanished. The walls were no longer smeared with blood. There was nothing more in the hospital except a narrow dark hallway. Jesse was alone.

But tears continued to roll down his cheeks. He knew he had failed to save Laurie from Pyramid Head. All he could feel was guilt as he pounded his fist in anguish.

Just then, his walkie-talkie buzzed. He silently extracted it out of his bag and answered the call.

"Y-yeah…?" he asked.

"Jess, are you okay?" said the voice of Miss Edmunds.

"Yeah…I…I'm fine."

"Good to hear." Miss Edmunds continued. "Listen…we need to regroup right now. There's something about Janice..."


	8. Chapter 8

Disclaimer: BTT and Silent Hill belong to Katherine Paterson and Konami respectfully. No profit is being made out of this work.

…

Chapter Eight

…

Janice and Miss Edmunds ventured cautiously through the abandoned Toluca Prison. If was lucky they had their flashlights handy, otherwise it'd be impossible to roam around. It was hard to make anything out in this discarded and dilapidated place. The prison complex offered no sign of life…just like every other place they had already visited.

They walked together past the visiting rooms and through the narrow and claustrophobic corridors. There were so many doors unopened and far too much to explore. Perhaps it was best if they separated.

"Maybe we should split up." suggested Miss Edmunds. "We'll be able to cover more ground that way. I'll go down this end."

"Point taken." Janice replied, attaching her flashlight to her shotgun. "Call me if you need me."

"Will do." Miss Edmunds nodded, attaching her flashlight to her rifle. "Keep your eyes peeled. A prison like this can be anything but friendly."

…

A quiet half hour passed without much progress.

Miss Edmunds was searching an unlit hallway lined with empty prison cells. None of them were locked but were far past decayed. Steadying her rifle and approaching each cell carefully, she found nothing threatening except dirty beds and dripping water.

It was calm…too calm. Miss Edmunds gathered her thoughts and began to ask herself just how long she could keep up this story about John that she had been fabricating for some time now. She wondered when would be the right time to tell Jesse and Janice that she was in truth, looking for somebody who was already-

Sniff…

Something distracted her. Miss Edmunds paused when she heard the faint sound of a child, sobbing and sniffing near the end of the hallway. It was coming from one of the last cells.

The sobbing grew louder with every passing second, only making Miss Edmunds feel unnerved. Could it possibly be somebody in trouble, or was her feeble mind simply playing tricks on her? Would it be too cruel for her not to investigate?

Whether she was hearing things or not, Miss Edmunds wasn't the kind of woman to chicken out. She crept towards the furthest cell, listening to the child's continuous cries of distress as she flashed her light. There didn't appear to be a child anywhere.

"Hello?" Miss Edmunds called into the soulless cell. "Is someone in there? Can you hear me?"

No answer…except for the child's constant sobbing which failed to cease.

Miss Edmunds was worried. She couldn't imagine any sick adult locking up an innocent child in a daunting prison. "Hang in there, kid." she said, sliding open the cell door. "Don't be scared now. You'll be okay."

However, the instant she stepped inside, the child's sobbing went to an abrupt halt. Only silence filled the room. She searched every corner and found no one but her own silhouette. Then…she heard terrifying laugh that it brought a chill down her spine…

"MWA HA-HA-HA-HA-HAAAAAA!"

A deep cackling voice roared within the cell. Miss Edmunds backed against the wall, raising her rifle in defense. She was not one to be toyed with, but whatever was taunting her wasn't intimidated by the young lady's firearm.

Miss Edmunds suddenly felt an invisible arm wrap around her neck, putting her into an immediate chokehold. She struggled hard to reclaim her breath, but her enemy's grip proved to be more than a challenge. The psychotic laughter resumed as she tried to break free, but whatever was behind her was holding her back against the wall firmly.

As a last resource, Miss Edmunds slammed the butt of her rifle against her assailant. To her success, the attack worked and she was allowed to escape from the ghostly grasp that was suffocating her. She swiftly spun round and pointed her rifle at the wall…

There, standing before her, was a silhouette that did not belong to hers. Instead, it was that of a tall masculine figure. No doubt it belonged to whatever deranged inmate used to sleep in this cell. It stood there motionless but unafraid, staring blankly at Miss Edmunds, waiting for her to make her shot.

Miss Edmunds was about to pull the trigger, but then the sound of a wailing siren interrupted her, and her flashlight began to flicker on and off. She shook her only source of light and begged for it to start functioning again. Eventually, the light did return…but the evil silhouette that was once with her had disappeared. What was more alarming though, was that the cell she was in had changed dramatically.

In fact, the entire prison had changed. Blood was smeared all over the walls. Skeletal bones were scattered across each open cell. But to Miss Edmund's dread, she found the floors, the ceiling and her feet crawling with abnormally large cockroaches…Creepers.

Miss Edmunds screamed, wiping away the ugly creepy-crawlies climbing up her jeans and then dealt with having to get rid of the ones jumping onto her sleeves. A few of them flew onto her head, their hissing ringing her ears. She fiercely swiped them away again. She then took her rifle and began firing at the swarm closing in on her to frighten them away. Her path was made temporarily clear, and she fled the cell to return to the hallway.

Bad news awaited her in the hallway, plagued with more Creepers, hungry to devour her. There was no possible way she could eliminate all of them with so many in number…not to mention they were such little targets. At this time, Miss Edmunds could have easily urinated herself. But petrified as she was, she knew that the only door to escape stood beyond her worst fears.

And if she wanted to survive, she had to bite the bullet and pull through with this.

Miss Edmunds hesitantly ran forwards as the bloodsuckers intruded in her way. She listened to the crunches under her boots while she treaded on several Creepers, shutting her eyes and reaching a hand out for the exit. The Creepers ran all over her clothes, her hair and her face.

But as much as they tried to hinder her progress, Miss Edmunds was in no mood to surrender to such tiny creatures.

When she felt her fingers touch the door, Miss Edmunds swung it wide open, rushing out of the damned hallway of bugs. Once she was out, she slammed the door shut behind her, disposing of the few Creepers that happened to pass through. She grabbed them off her shoulders, hurling them to the ground ruthlessly and stomping on them with disgust.

After squishing the last bug, Miss Edmunds saw that there were no more Creepers to worry about.

She knew she had evaded a great danger and had overcome one of her greatest fears. But before she could rejoice, she was startled when she heard a deafening cry from the opposite end of the corridor. It was that of Janice Avery:

"NO, DADDY! PLEASE!"

Miss Edmunds rushed across the bloodied corridor, ignoring the spinning vents attached to the ceiling and walls. She followed the endless cries of help from Janice, running faster than the wind to rescue her. She then stopped when she noticed something oddly peculiar; one of the doors she passed by was missing.

Peeking in, Miss Edmunds' heart dropped when she saw Janice on the floor, being attacked by an unshaped monster. It appeared as two figures; a manly one towering over a child, both lying on a bed and covered in a layer of putrid skin. The child figure continuously screamed in torment. The figures were trapped in a rectangular board with arms and legs sticking out from the bottom of the monster. The lower portion of the monster looked like a bed with four posts.

This Doorman creature didn't sense Miss Edmunds pointing her rifle at it. She took a clean shot on its back, which only alerted the creature's attention of her presence and did little harm. It spun to her direction, charging at Miss Edmunds on its fours. Miss Edmunds attempted to reload her gun quickly, but wasn't quick enough.

The Doorman discarded the gun out of her hands as it charged into her belly, ramming her harshly against the wall. It did so several more times, as Miss Edmunds tried to free herself. She managed to do so when she stabbed the back heel of her boot into one of the creature's heads. The creature shrieked and was withdrawn for a while, giving Miss Edmunds enough time to crawl and regain her rifle.

But her recovery time was short-lived, because the Doorman pounced onto Miss Edmunds like a ferocious lion onto its prey. With her gun stuck between her hands and those of the creature, it was impossible to take another shot. The creature pinned its victim to the ground, as it forced Miss Edmunds' head into its mouth, which resembled a vaginal opening.

"AAA!" Miss Edmunds screamed, facing the impending horror before her.

But just then…

BOOM!

The Doorman received a heavy blast to its rear, drawing it away from Miss Edmunds. Janice pointed her shotgun at the wounded creature, snarling at it repulsively. She cocked her gun and fired again…again…again…again…and again…

"DIE…DIE…DIE, YOU SON A OF BITCH!" she raised her voice, screaming uncontrollably. "I HATE YOU! I HATE YOU, DADDY! GET OUT OF MY LIFE, YOU BASTARD! JUST DIE ALREADY!"

By the time Janice used up all the ammunition in her magazine, the Doorman was long dead in its corner, collapsed and deflated from too many gunshots. Janice dropped her gun and started kicking the dead creature, stomping on its heads even after they cracked under her boots.

Once she had exhausted herself, she fell down to her knees, sobbing in tears.

"He deserved it. Daddy deserved what he got after treating mom that way." Janice wept. "Just…just what am I gonna do now?"

The same siren wailed again from outside, and slowly, the room shifted back into its original form. All the fans, all the blood, and the Doorman itself began to vanish. What remained was the darkened prison ground like before.

Miss Edmunds crawled over to Janice and hugged her like a mother would to her sickly daughter. It was clear to her that Janice was suffering a mental breakdown. What she needed now was friendly comfort.

Miss Edmunds took out her walkie-talkie from her pocket to contact Jesse…

"Y-yeah…?" Jesse's voiced answered.

"Jess, are you okay?" asked Miss Edmunds.

"Yeah…I…I'm fine."

"Good to hear." she continued, rubbing Janice's back. "Listen…we need to regroup right now. There's something about Janice…"


	9. Chapter 9

Disclaimer: BTT and Silent Hill belong to Katherine Paterson and Konami respectfully. No profit is being made out of this work.

…

Chapter Nine

…

Jesse sat with Janice and Miss Edmunds at a bus stop bench, a short distance away from Brookhaven Hospital. They were still fear stricken by their own terrifying encounters. But for Janice, it seemed she was on the verge of losing her mind.

Jesse heard everything about Janice and the Doorman creature in the prison. Miss Edmunds knew that all was not right with Janice. There was something indeed that she was hiding from them. So she kindly persuaded her former student to finally speak out…

"You wanna know? Okay, I'll tell you." A broken Janice sighed, wiping her tears with her sleeve. "Mom left me and my dad a year ago. Ever since then, dad's been taking out the blame on me. It isn't right…every day I come home from work, it's the same beating over and over again, whether it's being slapped in the face constantly, being raped in my own bedroom, or being hurled down the stairs for arguing back."

Jesse remembered Janice's bruised leg that he saw from the gas station previously.

"I couldn't take it anymore. So a few days ago, I took out my dad's shotgun from his closet when he was asleep. I pointed the barrel to his mouth while he snored so loudly it made me sick. When he opened his eyes to find me on his bed, I pulled the trigger…blowing his fucking brains out. The bastard deserved it…but I knew from then on, the law would be after me. So I ran...I got into my dad's truck and drove as far as I could away from my home to nowhere. On the way I met you, Jess. And now we're stuck in this goddamn town that's trying to eat us alive…maybe I deserve to be here after what I've done."

Jesse couldn't imagine the torment Janice had to endure throughout her life so far. It made him sad to hear about the unforgivable things her father did to her. Her father was far more cold-hearted than how Jesse once thought his father was a decade ago.

There had been enough horrors in this town already. Jesse didn't see the reason why he couldn't hold back in revealing his secret intentions of coming here in the first place any longer. What would a little more surprise do for them anyway?

"There's something you two should know." Jesse took a deep breath, about to confess as he reached his hand into his pocket to take out a folded note. "The real reason I came here, was because I received this letter…from Leslie. She asked me to come here and meet her in a 'special place', which I've been trying to find. I know it's crazy, but I think this somehow might be related to all the stuff happening in this town."

Jess unfolded the letter to show the girls Leslie's writing and signature.

Miss Edmunds' eyes widened as she gasped in amazement. She dug into her pocket and revealed a similar letter in her shaking hand. "Jess…I got the same letter too…from Leslie."

Jesse fell speechless.

"I'm sorry," Miss Edmunds apologized. "but John doesn't actually exist. I made him up as an excuse to come here. I didn't want to scare any of you, but Leslie summoned me here as well. I spoke to her father about Silent Hill at his house a few days ago and he showed me the way here. He was reluctant to tell me about Silent Hill at first…and awfully surprised when I left…"

Jesse pondered. Mr. Burke would have known by now that something supernatural was going on. He must have known that there was a reason why Leslie wanted Jesse and Miss Edmunds to come to Silent Hill, but he didn't know why. But as Jesse once said, it was Leslie's will, and Mr. Burke was the kind of man who wouldn't interfere in his daughter's will.

Janice suddenly snatched both letters from Jesse's and Miss Edmunds' hands. She inspected the front and the back of the paper repeatedly. Her face dropped with sheer panic.

"What's the matter, Janice?" Jesse asked.

"I don't see anything written here." Janice quivered, her eyes twitching. "They're just blank pages. There's NOTHING written here!"

"What?" remarked Miss Edmunds. "But how can that be…?"

"You're both full of shit!" Janice hissed. "Can't you see these pages are BLANK?"

She violently tore the letters to pieces out of frustration. She wouldn't tolerate Jesse and Miss Edmunds pulling mean jokes with her. Or worse, she couldn't stand to see them going mad. It seemed evident to her that her friends were losing their own minds.

"Janice, stop!" Jesse insisted, watching the shredded pieces of the letters scatter.

"DON'T TOUCH ME!" Janice sprung away from the bench and pointed her shotgun at Jesse…and then to Miss Edmunds as she attempted to restrain her. "Don't either of you touch me! I'm gonna find a way out of this hellhole by myself if I have to! For all I care, you two can stay and die here with those creeps out there!"

With that said, Janice turned away and ran into the fog, disappearing from sight.

"Oh, for Christ's sake." Miss Edmunds sighed. "Jesse, stay put, I have to go after Janice. I can't bear to see one of my ex-students get hurt anymore in a place like this. Call me if there's any trouble."

Miss Edmunds then vanished into the fog as well, leaving Jesse on his own.

Jesse felt a sudden urge to seek out Leslie's address, now that this seemed like the perfect time. Disobeying Miss Edmunds' wishes, Jesse set off on his own journey, taking the documents out of his knapsack and following its leads.

…

The former Burke's house was surprisingly not boarded up, unlike all the other houses Jesse passed by. It was also the least that appeared in a state of disrepair. Although that was not to say that it was habitable.

The house didn't seem to have been painted for a while, since the colors were dying out. The windows were left intact and unbroken, though they were incredibly dirty and hadn't been cleaned for a long period of time. The front yard, regretful to say, was in a dire need of mowing.

Jesse crossed the field of weeds towards the front door. He knocked on the door and received no response. He knocked a second time, and discovered the door to be unlocked and faintly open. Had someone broken inside prior to his arrival?

Jesse bravely stepped into the unfurnished and abandoned house. Inside, the wallpaper was crumbling, cobwebs were many on the floor and ceiling, and the ambience was eerily chilly. He searched around the first floor, across the empty kitchen and into the worn out living room. Nothing except broken furniture remained in this desolate house. Mr. Burke wasn't kidding when he said that he and his wife were in a mad hurry to leave this town.

It was there, nearby the unused fireplace where he found something that caught his eye. There seemed to be something the Burkes missed whilst they were packing. Jesse went over to pick up a dusty glass picture. As he inspected closer, through the shattered glass was an old but colored photo of a cheerful child; four or five years old if Jesse had to guess. She was dressed in a navy blue swimsuit with a tutu attached to it. She was posing behind a familiar looking lake that seemed to stretch for miles. Next to her was a wooden signboard, which read 'Toluca Lake'.

That must have been the lake where Jesse first met Laurie! Could that lake have been the 'special place' Leslie was referring to? It was possible…

Creeeek…

His mind was put off by the sound of footsteps from upstairs. Somebody was in the house other than him. Jesse loaded his gun and carefully crept upstairs…

As he ascended up the steps, Jesse heard the faint humming of a child's voice. It was coming from a closed room, illuminated by a light permeating through the door's keyhole and under its sill. He tiptoed his way towards the door, nudging one hand against it to slowly reveal Leslie's cozy bedroom.

The brightness of the room inside nearly blinded Jesse. He found Leslie's bed, neatly made and untouched. He found the carpet spotlessly clean and unstained. Though what alarmed him most was the child he found humming to herself at a dressing table, admiring her own graceful reflection in the mirror.

It was Laurie, singing as she tidied her hair with a brush, wiping her bracelets and adjusting her earrings and finger rings. She appeared to have applied black eyeliners on herself, not to mention green eyelid makeup. Her lips were much redder, indicating that she had put on lipstick. And furthermore, she had placed red spots on her cheeks, making herself appear like a living doll.

This was far too unnerving for Jesse to watch.

Laurie saw Jesse's reflection in the mirror and a delightful smile crossed her face immediately.

"Glad you made it, Jess." She spun round on her chair, crossing her legs with a friendly wave. "You like my new look?"

"Laurie…" Jesse murmured, beyond disbelief. "…you're alive? But how could this be? I saw you killed by that…that…!"

Laurie frowned in confusion. "Wait, what are talking about, Jess?"

"I saw you die!" Jesse exclaimed. "I saw you die in that long hallway by that thing with its huge blade and…and…!"

Laurie grinned and simply burst into laughter. She thought Jesse was making the whole ordeal up. "You're funny, Jess! Where do you get these crazy ideas from?"

"Huh?" Jesse frowned.

"Don't you remember? We just got lost in that hospital; that's no big deal. Nobody died, silly!" Laurie reminded him cheerfully. "Are you confusing me with someone else?"

"I…I…"

Laurie tilted her head when she noticed Jesse holding Leslie's photo in his hands.

"Hey, I remember swimming there!" Laurie pointed out. "It was pretty cold that day, but gee whizz, what a great experience it was diving into such a beautiful blue lake! I'd never felt so happy and free in my life! Which kinda reminds me…remember that time we first met in school, Jess, and I gave that class presentation that made everyone laugh? Boy…it was hard fitting in with those other kids. Remember those two boys that used to pick on you, Scott Hoager and Gary Fulcher? They were a pain in the butt. Oh, but remember our music teacher Miss Edmunds? She was such a great musician. And remember Mrs. Myers? We always used to call her Monster Mouth Myers. But Jess…do you remember when we used to swing on that rope every day after school, to that world we made up together, Terabithia? That's where we built that wonderful tree house together. I wonder if it's still there…huh, that reminds me of the time your sister took your father's keys and he got mad at you…oh, and I can't forget about Prince Terrien…"

Jesse was feeling most disturbed, just listening to Laurie reminisce EVERYTHING from Leslie's past.

"Say Jess, can I ask one more question? Did you ever have a crush on Miss Edmunds?"

Personal as that question was, Jesse was unwilling to answer. "How about if I ask something?" he said, breaking his silence. "Who are you really?"

Laurie shrugged innocently and casually smiled, leaving her chair, and approached Jesse seductively. "I'm everything you want me to be." She softly spoke, drawing closer to him. "You're so worked up. I know how it feels to be alone for so long, but it doesn't have to be that way anymore, because I'm here for you, Jess. Everything will be okay…now that you're here, nothing will separate us."

Jesse's hands touched Laurie's, their fingers bound together like two soul mates. Laurie got on her toes, looking up towards Jesse's nervous face, letting her perfume invade his sense of smell. She then whispered in his ear: "We'll always be together."

Her lips brushed against his as she kissed him passionately, shutting her eyes to enjoy every moment of this blissful feeling.

But Jesse's senses returned when he looked at himself in the mirror, making out with a child half his height. The image sickened him and it was disgusting to watch. He furiously pushed Laurie back, making her fall onto her bed.

"Jess…" A bewildered Laurie asked him. "What's wrong?"

"You are NOT Leslie." Jesse said sternly. "Leslie would never force me into a kiss like that. I don't know who you are or where you're from, but you better stop playing these sick little games of yours! YOU HEAR ME?"

That broke Laurie's heart, tears formed as she began to weep. "Jesse, what's the matter with you? Can't you remember me? Why do you have to be so cruel to me?"

Jesse shook his head firmly. "Don't think crying is gonna change anything, Laurie…if that truly is your name."

"We used to play together in Terabithia and…!"

Jesse slapped Laurie so hard that it left a red mark on her cheek.

"Don't you EVER talk about Terabithia with me."

"What the HELL IS YOUR PROBLEM?" Laurie screamed back. "I'm being nice to you and this what I get in return? All you care about is that dead girlfriend of yours, isn't it? You don't care about me, you don't care about ANYONE!"

Laurie ran for the door and rushed down the stairs, fleeing the house as she wailed. Jesse tried to calm himself down from this angry confrontation. It made him wonder who Laurie really was. Or a better question; what was going on in this crazy town?

Just then, his walkie-talkie buzzed. Jesse picked it up and answered the call.

"Jess?" Miss Edmunds voice said. "Can you hear me?"

"Loud and clear." Jesse confirmed.

"Great. Now listen to me, I managed to track Janice down to an amusement park. It's on the opposite side of the lake near Rosewater Park. I don't know where she is exactly, but I think you'd better come help me find her. The place is huge. Reckon you can find your way here by yourself?"

"Sure thing, Miss Edmunds." Jesse confirmed. "Umm…"

"Jess, is everything all right?"

"Yeah…I think so."


	10. Chapter 10

Disclaimer: BTT and Silent Hill belong to Katherine Paterson and Konami respectfully. No profit is being made out of this work.

…

Chapter Ten

…

Nightfall arrived quickly in Silent Hill, as did the drop in temperature. Jesse rushed through the town, afraid that more monsters would spawn soon. He managed to make it back to Toluca Lake in a short matter of time.

It was there on the coast where he discovered a small seaport, where a wooden deck roped spare motorboats. Miss Edmunds and Janice must have taken these to reach the other side to the amusement park. Jesse could just vaguely make it out in the distance with its neon lights…no thanks to the fog of course.

He took out his walkie-talkie in hopes to contact Miss Edmunds and check on her status. But there was trouble getting in contact since the signal was incredibly weak. Jesse prayed that Miss Edmunds was all right but couldn't help worrying all the while.

Without wasting any more time, he untied one of the boats and jumped in. Jesse noticed a wooden box attached inside the boat, which supplied a flare gun in case he was in need of rescue. He removed the gun from the box and placed it into his knapsack.

Now that he was set, he yanked the cord of the motorboat and started his way towards the amusement park.

…

It took a good fifteen minutes to finally reach the other side. The lake was awfully quiet. There were no unusual creatures lurking about in the calm waters. It seemed almost too easy crossing it.

Jesse arrived at the docks of where appeared the burned remains of a building overlooking the lake. A charred sign in front of it confirmed it as Lake View Hotel. It must have been built for tourists when Silent Hill was a poplar attraction. How it all came to this was beyond Jesse's knowledge.

Regardless however, this was not the time to investigate. There were bigger things happening elsewhere. Jesse ran onwards from the docks and past the hotel, onwards to a sign leading to Lake Side Amusement Park.

…

Although the lights were on, the park was deathly deserted. None of the rides were functioning. It seemed more like a ghost town than a place of fun and merriment. The ambiance was full of misery rather than laughter and enjoyment. There was no cheer in this park at all.

Jesse froze when he saw several human-sized dolls of Robbie the Rabbit, Joyce Ann's favorite soft toy, scattered everywhere upon the park grounds. He must have been the highlight and main mascot in Lake Side. Some of them were leaning motionless against fences, some were sitting lifelessly on broken rides, while others closer to Jesse lounged idly on the benches. The most disturbing thing was that their faces and overalls were smeared messily with what Jesse assumed to be blood.

Jesse wasn't sure whether there was anyone dead inside those costumes or not, but he wasn't interested to find out. He crept his way silently past them, keeping his eyes on their elongated smiles whilst calling out for Janice and Miss Edmunds. For a split-moment, he could have sworn that one of them nudged its head towards him…

…

It didn't take long until Jesse stumbled across the gates leading to an old house attraction, so called the Borley Haunted Mansion. By the name of it, it was obvious what to expect from such a place. Even the structure of the house itself reminded Jesse of those horror movies he used to watch with his college mates.

Yet for some inexplicable reason, he felt drawn to it, as if something was waiting for him. If there was a place to hide in this park, it would most likely be somewhere deep in this gimmicky mansion, a place that not many people would have the balls to venture into. He couldn't help but wonder whether Janice or Miss Edmunds were wondering somewhere inside.

Jesse took the courage to explore the mansion and stepped in.

The hall seemed harmless enough. Not much light inside, except for grubby candles and a tasteless chandelier. Jesse stepped onto the marble floor, ignoring the eerie atmosphere of this otherwise old-fashioned habitat. Nobody was present, although Jesse tried to pay little attention to the faint laughter echoing somewhere within the walls of the mansion. Whether it was part of the attraction or an actual mischievous spirit, he did not know.

There were several doors to choose from, including several ones on the upper floor linked with a carpeted staircase. However, Jesse decided to press on and head forwards. With his gun ready, he kicked open a pair of double doors, pointing at whatever might be lurking on the other side.

There was nothing to be frightened of…except Jesse's own reflection, stretching for what seemed like miles down a narrow overlong hallway. Its walls were constructed of glass mirrors, stretching down all the way to another door on the opposite side. Jesse entered the long hallway of mirrors vigilantly.

His reflections followed closely with his footsteps, failing to notice a few of them scowling back at him antagonistically. Jesse looked onwards, uninterested in viewing himself. He heard voices from the following door beyond. It sounded like crying from a woman. Could it have been Janice or Miss Edmunds?

Jesse reached for the door's handle and swung it open. He found himself inside a small dining room, decorated nicely with candle lamps and a dining table served for a family. Plates and cutlery were placed neatly on the table with wine glasses. But there was neither food nor any drinks.

Behind the table at a lit fireplace, knelt a weeping Miss Edmunds. Her face was stricken with terror. She remained still, afraid to move due to the sharp blade of a steak knife placed under her chin. The wielder of the knife was Laurie, her eyes blood red and her makeup ruined. Trails from her black eye liners could be seen down her cheeks as a result from her dried up tears.

"Jesse?" Miss Edmunds whispered in a meek voice. "Just what in God's name is happening here?"

"God has nothing to do with this." Jesse replied, lowering the gun only slightly, feeling nervous about this dire situation. "Laurie, listen to me. None of us needs to get hurt if you put down the knife and let Miss Edmunds go."

"No." Laurie growled, gritting her teeth. She was still clearly upset from their last meeting together. "Why should I? I know you too well, Jess. You have a crush on this worthless whore just as much as that fucking Leslie."

Jesse tried to remain calm and hold his anger back.

"Tell me, how many times has it been that you've fantasized screwing Miss Edmunds in the ass?" asked Laurie in a casual voice, "I bet you'd love to do it doggie-style."

"SHUT UP!" Jesse fiercely raised his gun. He couldn't take any more of the child's hateful insults.

"Ah-ah-ah…" Laurie waved a finger at him, drawing her knife closer to Miss Edmunds' throat. She threatened to slit it if Jesse was to loose his temper again. "…don't lose your cool so fast."

"Let her go!" Jesse demanded again. "This isn't about her. It's ME you want."

"That's true." answered Laurie with a demonic smirk. "But you know what would be worse than killing you? Killing your loved ones. So actually, I don't care what you have to say, because I'm going to slay this bitch whether you like it or not."

Miss Edmunds' heart pounded, as did Jesse's. Laurie wasn't kidding when she said she'd kill Miss Edmunds right here, right now. Miss Edmunds could feel the cold blade about to slice her delicate skin. But then something interrupted the ordeal. The interruption came from a wailing siren from outside.

The room faded to pitch dark. And when brightness returned, the room had drastically altered into a more nightmarish mansion. The walls like before, were smeared in blood whilst fans on the ceiling were spinning wildly. What was worse was that there was an extra person standing in the room. Behind Laurie was Pyramid Head, who startled Laurie so much that it gave Miss Edmunds the chance to flee. She pushed Laurie's hand away and fled towards Jesse.

Laurie dropped her knife as Pyramid Head slapped her aside against a glass cabinet with a mighty swing from its arm. Sustaining injury, she tried to crawl away amidst the shards of broken glass stained with her blood, but she wasn't quick enough. Pyramid Head's shadow overwhelmed Laurie as she looked back in dread.

Laurie screamed when she was raised off the ground, choking as Pyramid Head wrapped its fingers around her neck. She struggled powerlessly, kicking her feet so hard that her sneakers fell off. Pyramid Head showed no remorse, squeezing the life out of its victim until Laurie's neck finally snapped. Her arms dropped immediately.

Jesse and Miss Edmunds covered their faces, unable to bear it.

Pyramid Head dropped the dead girl and turned its attention towards the two witnesses. Jesse and Miss Edmunds agreed it was best to flee the mansion, rather than waste ammunition on fighting. Both of them turned and left the dining room, back into the mirrored hallway.

Jesse shut the door firmly behind him, hoping that Pyramid Head would not follow them.

No sooner had they arrived in the hallway did they discover that it was in flames. Jesse and Miss Edmunds felt the place heating up fast as thick smoke filled the air with a strong sizzling scent. The two rushed hastily without word…until they encountered Janice in their path, staring grievously at her own reflection in a fractured mirror. She appeared frail, her face pale as a ghost in a worse state of anguish. Yet she gazed at herself, contemplating about all the sins she had committed in her life and all the horrors she had to experience.

"Janice!" Jesse yelled, tugging her arm as he ran passed her. "What the hell are you doing here? We have to get out! C'mon!"

But Janice did not budge. Still stricken with too much sorrow in her heart, she refused to leave her spot. She turned towards Jesse, her eyes deep in despair. She knew that if she went with him, there would still be no hope left for her in this world.

In her mind, she was already dead.

"Can I ask you a question?" she asked desolately. "Were you ever in love with Leslie back in school?"

"What…?" Jesse frowned.

"I thought so…" Janice sighed. "You gotta let her go, Jess. Seriously…just let her go…stop crying like a wimp…stop being such a pussy…and don't end up like me. You can't help me now. It's too late."

"Janice, what's the matter?" Miss Edmunds asked.

"Leave me." Janice muttered. "Get out of here while you still can."

A ring of fire surfaced from the ground and circulated Janice. Jesse and Miss Edmunds recoiled as the flames gradually rose. There was no time to dilly-dally. They had to escape this mansion before they'd be cooked geese.

"I've lived long enough…" Janice said woefully. "There's so many disgusting things I've seen in this world…I never had love...no one to care for me…to be honest, I sometimes envy you, Jess…because I wish I had a better life like yours."

"It doesn't have to be this way, Janice." Jesse responded. "It's never too late for help. We can work this out, I promise."

"What's the point?" Janice shook her head, tossing away her shotgun to Jesse's feet. Jesse picked it up skeptically. "Whatever happens, those miserable cops are gonna toss me behind bars. I might as well end this now, while I still have the chance."

The flames roared, rising to greater heights as she became less visible. Jesse was anxious to save her at this point and was about to leap through the fire, but Miss Edmunds pulled him back before he'd get himself fried to a crisp.

"JANICE! DON'T BE A FOOL!" Jesse yelled out, making his final plea from within the raging inferno. "I WON'T LET YOU DIE IN THIS HELL!"

Janice quietly sighed, still hopeless. "You don't get it, do you, Jess? I've ALWAYS lived in hell…you just couldn't see it…until now."

With that said, the flames engulfed Janice and swallowed her up whole.

"NOOO!" Jesse cried, struggling to break free from Miss Edmund's grasp.

The hallway was collapsing. Glass was shattering. Miss Edmunds was forced to drag Jesse out of the hallway, through the hall and out of the mansion, leaving their saddened comrade behind to burn in her own guilt and agony.

Regretful as she was, Miss Edmunds knew that Janice Avery was gone.

…

Author's Note: I just finished playing 'Downpour'. And for a while, I actually considered having Jesse and Miss Edmunds being chased by the Void in this chapter, but couldn't really find a place to put it in.

In case any of you readers have no idea what I'm talking about, I'm referring to the latest Silent Hill video game. The Void is a recurring enemy that constantly pursues the hero, sucking everything in its path. If you've played the game, you'll know exactly how intense and scary it can be having to run away from it.


	11. Chapter 11

Disclaimer: BTT and Silent Hill belong to Katherine Paterson and Konami respectfully. No profit is being made out of this work.

…

Chapter Eleven

…

Jesse and Miss Edmunds had escaped the flames of the Borley house. They feared Pyramid Head would catch up with them soon. Jesse quickly cast aside his thoughts on the sudden loss of his friend, because from the moment they were outside, he and Miss Edmunds were stopped at the gates.

Crowding the park were the once immobile Robbie dolls, now hauntingly brought to life, armed with weapons that were far from friendly. They were out to kill for blood. They laughed maniacally in unison with their elongated grins, waving their knives, axes and hammers.

Jesse was shocked, but Miss Edmunds was brave enough to make the first move. She raised her rifle, aiming at the first incoming Robbie, and shot bulls eye between its eyes. The Robbie collapsed over a bench, instantly dead. But where one was slain, more simply took its place.

"Hurry, Jess! We gotta run now!" Miss Edmunds pulled his arm, taking the lead. "Don't hesitate. Just shoot to kill at whatever gets in your way!"

Jesse returned to his senses and took out his handgun. "Okay, I'll cover your back! Let's go!"

Miss Edmunds sprinted towards the gates, evading Robbies plaguing the front yard as she fled. One Robbie was waiting for her at the entrance, raising a hammer above its head. She whacked it aside with the butt of her gun before it could swing.

The carnival grounds were swarming with more maniacal Robbies. Their choruses of cackles made Jesse feel nervous. But Miss Edmunds remained intrepid. She loaded more ammunition into her rifle and began firing one after another. A Robbie was about to toss a knife at her from afar at a hot dog stand. Miss Edmunds locked her eyes onto her target and shot it down immediately.

Jesse protected her from behind, firing at other Robbies creeping up behind them. A bullet flew at one in the arm, then another on the chest, but his handgun did little to stall them. A third Robbie swung its knife across his face. Jesse narrowly avoided getting cut but was forced to swerve again when it continued its attack. This distracted him long enough for a fourth Robbie to tackle him to the floor.

Jesse recovered his sight quickly but then realized that the Robbie who knocked him down was already on its knees before him; it was about to split his brain open in two with its axe. But the attack was halted when a speeding bullet tore directly into its right ear and out from its left. This resulted in small streams of blood leaking out of both ears. The Robbie dropped its axe and slumped sideways.

Jesse rose and saw that Miss Edmunds and her trusty rifle had saved him.

"Shoot 'em in the head, Jess!" Miss Edmunds advised him.

He acknowledged and jumped back to his feet. Jesse aimed for the Robbies' heads and knocked them down faster with ease. He was careful not to consume all of his bullets and opt for running if the opportunity allowed it. The Robbies were relatively slow, yet extremely dangerous when met up close. Fortunately, that meant that they weren't any good at chasing people.

Jesse and Miss Edmunds eventually made their way out of the amusement park, leaving the murderous Robbies behind.

…

Miss Edmunds followed Jesse back to the docks where he had left his boat. He went to untie their ride back to town, while Miss Edmunds covered his back with her rifle still in hand, ensuring that nothing was to follow them. Toluca Lake began to grow chilly and an unsettling breeze surfaced.

Miss Edmunds kept her eyes on the docks, but turned them away for one moment to check Jesse's progress on untying the boat. When she looked back, somebody had appeared on the wooden platform. Instinctively, Miss Edmunds cocked her gun and prepared to fire at the young intruder.

Jesse heard this and drew his attention away from the boat. At once, he gasped. "NOOO! STOP!" he shouted, recognizing the intruder's identity.

It took Miss Edmunds a few seconds to realize whom she was pointing her gun at. It was Leslie. Not Laurie, but Leslie. She was not dressed the same way as Laurie in her overly flamboyant style of wear, but in her simple yet quirky attire; only the type that Jesse would know as being the real her. There she stood innocently, curious to see why the boy she summoned here was in such a desperate hurry to leave.

"Jesse." Leslie spoke softly, approaching him curiously. "Where have you been? I've been looking all over for you."

"Leslie…" Jesse replied, after abandoning his escape while he too approached her. "…is it really you?"

"Of course it is, silly." she grinned, elated to be reunited with her soul mate. "Why wouldn't I be?"

There was a silent stare between them. Jesse did not detect anything wrong about her…she looked practically normal…no moodiness in her voice or body language…and her eyes were hazel blue. That was enough proof for him that this was no imposter. Jesse went to embrace her long-lost friend dearly with a tear.

"Leslie!" Jesse said with a great sigh. "Leslie, oh Leslie! I can't believe it's finally you! I've been looking all over for you too! Thank God I found you at last."

"I missed you so much." Leslie whispered. "I was so scared."

"Don't worry, it's okay. I'm here." Jesse said, rubbing her back. "I won't leave your side. I'll never leave you behind here, I swear."

Miss Edmunds couldn't believe her eyes. The Leslie once thought to be dead had indeed been revived. There was she was, in the flesh, alive and kicking, lively as a cricket. There was no reason to be so doubtful. She and Jesse had found the person they were both seeking…by sheer unexpected coincidence…

"Please, sweetie." Leslie said in his ear. "Take me out of this horrible town. Let's go back home…back to Terabithia. The Terabithians must miss their queen so much."

"Of course." Jesse nodded.

He went back to continue untying the boat, while Leslie stood to wait. Miss Edmunds lowered her rifle and stood as well to do the same…but she soon noticed a hidden rope knife tucked behind in Leslie's pants pocket. Leslie secretly slipped a hand behind her back and quietly reached for her weapon. She then crept up to Jesse silently.

As Miss Edmunds saw this, she witnessed in a flash second Leslie's eyes shifting from blue to green. It was immediate she knew that this was in fact a trick conceived by Laurie…in the convincing guise of Leslie.

"JESSE!" Miss Edmunds warned him.

Jesse spun to see Laurie raising her knife at him. He caught Laurie's arms in the nick of time whilst being tackled to the ground, and an intense struggle ensued. The enraged Laurie's eyes reverted back to her poisonous jade green as she grit her teeth, yearning to stab Jesse in the heart for all the pain and stress he has caused her.

Miss Edmunds tried to take a shot with her rifle, but it proved difficult as Jesse kept getting in her way. She didn't want to hurt him if there was a misfire. Carefully and surely, she took her time to get a precise aim on Laurie.

And it happened.

BAM!

Just when she thought she had a clear shot, the bullet struck the knife out of Laurie's hand, rendering her unarmed. Jesse kicked Laurie away against her ribs and rushed to fetch the knife, lying right by the edge of the platform. Laurie was not willing to surrender the battle so easily. She got up and started running for Jesse.

Jesse reached his hand for the knife hastily, just a moment before Laurie impeded and tackled him down again. Laurie crawled over Jesse's back, hoping to claim the knife before him. But just when she thought she could have it, it was nowhere to be seen.

Jesse spun again with the knife hidden in the palm of his hand, driving the blade into Laurie's neck.

Laurie choked, standing up and grabbing her gushing wound, the knife still penetrated and stuck to the side of her neck.

"I should have known." Jesse admitted. "Leslie NEVER called me sweetie."

Laurie staggered, stepping off the edge of the docks and falling into the lake, sinking into its darkened depths.

Miss Edmunds withdrew her rifle in relief. "Jess…"

"I'm fine, Miss Edmunds." Jesse assured her. "Let's just get out of here."

Both of them hopped onto the boat, and soon, they were on their way out.

…

Five minutes passed along the tranquil and chilly lake. As previously, there were no signs of imminent danger, the air remained calm and all else was quiet. Jesse hoped that nothing sinister was following them.

On the other hand, Miss Edmunds already sensed something wrong when she heard a faint ghostly voice echoing from beneath the waters.

"Jesse, come back…"

She noticed something bubbling up in from behind their trail. Bubbles were amplifying while smoke began to rise from the lake's surface. Something was definitely following them, and it didn't seem pleasant.

"Jesse, come back…"

The voice pleaded again. Miss Edmunds stood up to check what was behind them. She saw a bulbous shape rising out from the surface, dark purple in color. Before she could say anything, the shape burst out from the water viciously to reveal itself as a grotesquely hideous beast.

"JESSE…COME BAAAAAAAAAACK!"

Laurie, now in the form of a colossal monster, exclaimed. Her rotten and decomposed head swam across the lake, in hot pursuit of the escaping boat. It wielded long but deadly tentacles as hair. Its gaping mouth revealed her razor sharp teeth and the endless black void waiting beyond them as she screamed out for Jesse's name, ready to swallow him and Miss Edmunds whole.

"We got company, Jess." Miss Edmunds said, loading her rifle. "BIG COMPANY!"

Jesse remained in his seat and sped the motor up. Miss Edmunds took her stand, firing bullets as the monster gained on them. It wasn't easy getting an accurate shot as the boat constantly rocked from the big waves caused by Laurie.

Laurie screamed as the bullets hit her. She swiped and splashed her tentacles back and forth at the boat, missing only by an inch or two. Too many close shaves for Jesse but they were still steady on their path to freedom.

Once she was near enough, she then widened her mouth. A mutated hand emerged, which attempted to grab the boat with its taloned fingers. By this time, Miss Edmunds' magazine was out. As the hand drew closer to her, she quickly opened her last box of bullets but realized that she had only one bullet left.

There was no time to waste. Miss Edmunds took the bullet and was about to load it into her gun. But then, the boat had to swerve and make a sharp turn when Jesse was forced to avoid an incoming tentacle. Miss Edmunds dropped the bullet, which ended up rolling underneath Jesse's seat.

Miss Edmunds dived underneath the seats, searching frantically for the bullet. Water splashed all over her back whilst the high-pitched screams from Laurie grew unbearable. Jesse lifted up his feet to make the search easier.

"Hurry, Miss Edmunds!" Jesse squealed.

"Okay, I'm trying!" Miss Edmunds cried out.

She reached her hand under Jesse's seat and felt the bullet's touch at the tip of her nails. She picked up it up immediately and loaded it into her gun. Since she only had one shot left, she had to make it count.

The hand from Laurie's mouth was drawing ever so near. Miss Edmunds took aim once again, making this shot as valuable as her life depended on it. The hand darted towards her, ready to grab her. The bullet was fired and penetrated right into the palm of the hand.

A fine hit it was. The wounded hand recoiled back into Laurie's mouth. Though they were saved from being grabbed, this did not mean the chase was over. Laurie had other intentions in mind.

Jesse could just see Rosewater Park ahead. They were near the end of their dangerous rollercoaster ride. But Laurie was still close on their tail, ready to make her next move.

Just as the mist cleared to make way for Jesse and Miss Edmunds to arrive, Laurie struck again. Placing a tentacle secretly underneath the boat in the water, she capsized it with one swift swing. Jesse and Miss Edmunds were flung off their bumpy ride and were hurled into the shadowy lake.

Jesse had no idea what happened when he splashed into the freezing and murky water. All he could think about was returning to the surface before he would drown. He grabbed his knapsack, still in his hands and swam up to take his needed breathe of oxygen.

The first thing he saw was the capsized boat and behind it, the furious Laurie. He swam frantically behind his boat and hid before he could be seen. He turned around his shoulder to see Rosewater Park, not far off from where he was floating.

He looked around for Miss Edmunds but found no sign of her. For a moment, Jesse believed she had been done for. Whether it was either by drowning or having been eaten by the untamed beast in front of him.

However, those thoughts were changed when Miss Edmunds was seen climbing onto the docks of Rosewater Park by a ladder. Lucky for her, she had secretly swum back to shore without Laurie's knowledge. But she no longer carried her rifle with her, leaving her defenseless.

After crawling onto the platform of the docks, Miss Edmunds saw Jesse stuck behind their boat, still eluding capture from Laurie. She wanted to call his name but Jesse signaled her to stay quiet, as he chose not to alert Laurie of their whereabouts. Miss Edmunds knelt still and quietly, praying that Jesse would find a way back to land some way or another.

He needed a damn miracle to get out of this.

Laurie was in a foul mood, feeling her tentacles around to find Jesse swimming about somewhere underwater. She could not find anything and began to growl in frustration. Then one of her tentacles grabbed something. She pulled an object out from the surface, revealing it to be nothing but Miss Edmunds' rifle. Laurie angrily crushed the weapon into useless junk and continued her search.

Jesse drew his attention back to Miss Edmunds and his heart dropped when he suddenly saw Pyramid Head on the docks.

"MISS EDMUNDS!" Jesse warned her.

But it was too late. Miss Edmunds had no time to react when Pyramid Head yanked her hair and pulled her back, dragging her away from the lake. Jesse tried to swim to her rescue.

"STOP!"

Jesse screamed. He heard something crash through the wood of the boat behind him as a slimy tentacle burst through it, wrapping itself around his waist and raising him to the skies.

Miss Edmunds screamed in immense pain. But she temporarily broke free when her hair slipped through Pyramid Head's bloody fingers and tried to escape. Pyramid Head struck her in the face, knocking her down half unconscious as blood leaked from her nose. It then placed a foot on her ribcage, to keep her still.

"STOP, PLEASE!"

Jesse begged again, ignoring the fact that he had been caught in Laurie's grasp. Laurie hardened his grip on Jesse and squeezed him as much as she could. Jesse cringed and bit his lip firmly, taking in all the internal pain he could endure.

By the time Miss Edmunds regained herself, she saw Pyramid Head staring down at her emotionlessly. She struggled to break free, but her opponent's foot was too overpowering. With no gun, no rescue and no other choice to make, Miss Edmunds knew that there was no way out for her.

All she could do was repent and shed a tear as she watched Pyramid Head raise its knife, pointing it at her eyes. With all hope lost, she wished this would be a quick and painless death for her at least.

"STOOOOOOOOOOP!"

Pyramid Head plunged its knife but paused just a hair away from one of its victim's eyelashes. For the first time, it stopped at Jesse's request, turning its head slowly towards him. It sensed he had something important to say.

"I understand now." Jesse confessed. "I understand what so many people have been trying to say to me, but I never listened to them. I didn't want to. Now I know why you keep haunting me… why you keep tormenting me…why you exist…it's because of Leslie. I kept refusing to let go of my past, let go of Leslie. Every night I kept asking myself why I left her alone on that day I went to the museum with Miss Edmunds. And you're here to punish me for all those hard feelings I've had for her, after all these years. But you know what? I've realized now that some events can never be changed…no matter how hard you try…nothing can be changed. The past can never be changed. The strongest thing that any person can do is to forget all that pain, move on in life, look forwards to the future, and linger no more in the past. I know now…and I acknowledge it."

Jesse turned his attention towards Laurie, listening to every word he said. "Laurie, I'm sorry. I can't be with you. We both gotta face it; nothing can replace the real Leslie. Killing me now won't help bring her back, and it won't solve anything. I was the one who made you what you are…through my mind…and I'm gonna tell you now…you have no more purpose to exist any longer. I don't need you anymore…just leave…leave…"

Laurie paused, thinking about Jesse's words. Meanwhile, Pyramid Head, having heard all that it needed to hear, released Miss Edmunds under its foot. It brought no more hostility against her as it took a few steps back. It held its knife against itself…and without warning, inserted the blade under its helmet, killing itself instantly. Its body slumped sideways, falling into the lake, sinking to the bottom.

Laurie was still reluctant to let Jesse go. She was unwilling to understand Jesse's feelings and still wanted him for herself. In a confused fit of rage, she roared monstrously and attempted to devour Jesse whole, squeezing him more within her grasp.

Jesse acted quickly. He opened his knapsack and took out Janice's shotgun. He aimed carefully with one hand at one of Laurie's lifeless eyes as her mouth expanded with her terrifying drooling teeth. It was now or never. This shot couldn't miss.

BAM!

The blast from the shotgun burst one of Laurie's eyeballs. Slime splattered out as Laurie unleashed a high-pitched squeal in extreme anguish. She dropped Jesse from her hold, who dived back into the lake.

Jesse wasn't finished yet though. As Laurie staggered, Jesse took out another weapon from his knapsack: the flare gun. He carefully took aim again, this time into Laurie's open socket and fired a red blazing flare directly into it. The flare entered Laurie's head and caused her to glow momentarily as she felt the extreme heat inside of her.

She let out one last ultimate scream…before her entire body burst into thousands of pieces. The explosion was so intense that Miss Edmunds ducked and covered her eyes as slime and chunks of flesh rained all over her. Jesse was pushed down to the bottom of the lake due to the impact of the blast…

…where he fell unconscious.


	12. Chapter 12

Disclaimer: BTT and Silent Hill belong to Katherine Paterson and Konami respectfully. No profit is being made out of this work.

…

Chapter Twelve

…

An exhausted Jesse sank to the bottom of the lake, unconscious yet victorious. Injured by the explosion, the depths swallowed him in. He was unafraid if he to die here. For he knew that he had finally conquered his torment of Leslie Burke.

As his head rested gently onto a rock, he heard a siren wail from above. The darkness around him lifted. Faintly opening his eyes, to his greatest feelings, he caught sight of an angelic sunlight, permeating through the calm blue water of the lake. Jesse had never seen anything more beautiful than that.

Was this Heaven coming to take him away from this torturous Earth?

Just then, a child figure appeared from within the sunlight, swimming down upon Jesse like a guardian angel. If this wasn't another hallucination, then Jesse was ready to accept his departure. He was ready to move on from this life.

As the sunlight dimmed, the figure, hovering above Jesse wondrously, revealed itself at last:

"Jess." smiled Leslie. "You came. You actually came to my special place."

"Le…Leslie." Jesse murmured under his broken voice, raising a hand to reach her. "It's you…it's finally you. I found you."

Leslie gladly accepted his hand and lifted him up, allowing him to join her in her underwater swim. Overjoyed after being reunited his soul mate, Jesse swam parallel with Leslie as he smiled with relief in their oceanic paradise. It was an ecstatic experience that Jesse could not forget, and one that he had to make the best out of.

After a while, Leslie asked Jesse to stop for a moment.

"I'm so glad to see you again." Leslie said sincerely. "Thanks so much for coming. I wanted to to see you one more time before I left."

"Leave…? Leave where…?"

Leslie pointed her finger up towards the shining sun. This only wiped Jesse's cheerfulness away as he suddenly became saddened, weeping silently. This time was short, and Leslie had to leave this world for good.

"Don't be sad, Jess." Leslie comforted him, touching her hands together with his. "I know how much trouble you've been through these past years. I know how sad things can be without me around. But listen to me, and listen good; you are the best person I know. You gotta cherish your life to the fullest. You got a will to live, Jess. And I hope you will learn things you never knew, see things that might surprise you, make you laugh, make you cry, make you feel that everything is worth living for. Please Jess…please do that for me."

Jesse gazed into Leslie's heartfelt eyes. She really meant her words. This was a promise that would be a shame to break. As her last departing request, Jesse would do anything for her.

"All right," Jesse nodded. "I'll do it. You have my word."

"That's the Jess I know." Leslie winked at him, patting him on the back.

An unknown force raised Leslie up back towards the sunlight, leaving Jesse to remain below. Leslie waved an earnest farewell to the closest friend she had ever made in her short but worthwhile life. Jesse shed more tears, swimming upwards desperately to grab her hand.

"Leslie!" he said.

"So long, Jess." Leslie shut her eyes, allowing the force to bring her to the new world.

"Leslie!" Jesse cried, begging her not to leave him.

"Take care of yourself." Leslie said, before her body was absorbed by the light, leaving only her hand visible.

"LESLIE!" Jesse screamed, grabbing hold of her hand.

Without warning, Jesse was dragged out of the lake by Miss Edmunds, who so happened to catch his hand. Jesse found himself back on land, soaking wet. Miss Edmunds appeared covered in monstrous slime, but was nevertheless elated to see that Jesse was still alive.

"Jess!" Miss Edmunds cried under her breath. "Are you okay?"

Jesse gazed out upon the lake, as the clouds made way for daylight and the sun dominated the empty but quiet town of Silent Hill. The fog had miraculously disappeared. There were no more hostile beings roaming around.

Peace had come at long last. There was nothing more to fear. Jesse was finally free.

"Couldn't be better." Jesse replied. "I just saw Leslie, Miss Edmunds. There's something she said that I think you should know about."

Miss Edmunds frowned in confusion. "Huh, what?"

…

"…and that's what she told me."

Jesse finished, following Miss Edmunds down a steep hill.

"Sounds kinda…believable." said Miss Edmunds, deep in thought. "But I'm still not sure whether that was real or just a figment of your own wild imagination."

"And what about all those monsters in town? You think THOSE were figments of our own wild imagination?" asked Jesse arguably…even though that might have been true. "By the way, why are we going to the bridge? I told you that it's collapsed. We can't cross it."

However, when the two of them arrived at the bridge, they found it in perfect condition, fixed and fit as a fiddle. Jesse rubbed his eyes in disbelief and stared at the safe pathway. Miss Edmunds raised a brow and glanced at Jesse.

"Collapsed, eh?" she snorted. "Come on. We can get to the highway from here. I'm sure somebody will pick us up."

Jesse couldn't understand how the bridge was repaired…that was unless…Leslie…

…

A third car zoomed past Miss Edmunds, who was hitching for a ride. This was becoming most frustrating for her.

"Damn it!" she stomped her foot and kicked the dirt at the side of the road. "People are SO inconsiderate these days. It wasn't this hard to get a ride back in my days."

Jesse noticed a huge trailer in the distance and pointed it out for his ex-teacher.

"Look!" Jesse exclaimed. "Let's try and get a ride from this one!"

Miss Edmunds huffed and tried her luck again. She stuck her thumb out on the road. She was ready to throw another fit if this driver didn't stop for them.

Luckily though, it did indeed stop. The driver opened the door for the two passengers in need for a lift. He appeared as bearded man, possibly in his sixties, wearing blue jeans, a pair of hiking boots, a red stripped button shirt, a yellow puffer and baseball cap. In short, he appeared as a run-of-the-mill stereotypical truck driver.

"Mornin'," he greeted amicably, "you two lookin' for a ride?"

"Absolutely." Miss Edmunds said, guiding Jesse into the truck first. "Thanks so much for stopping for us."

"Not a problem. Jump in." he continued, starting the truck's engine as he continued on the highway. "So…what are your names?"

"Kate Edmunds."

"Jesse Aarons."

"And where did you two come from? By the looks of it, I'd say you two came from one heck of party!" the driver chuckled.

"It's a long story." replied Jesse. "I don't think you'd believe us if we told you."

"Oh, really?" the driver raised a brow. "Try me, kid. I'll believe ya. I've been drivin' these roads for over forty years and seen lotsa crazy things happenin' around here."

Miss Edmunds tried to change the subject. "By the way, what's YOUR name? You didn't tell us."

"Grady…Travis Grady." The driver replied. "So…you two hungry? I bet you are. There's a nice diner I know about an hour from here. Got the best damn shakes in the world."

Miss Edmunds looked at Jesse. Both were dying for a hearty meal after such a crazy adventure. They nodded at Travis in agreement.

"Great, I appreciate some good company when I eat." Travis smiled, setting his eyes on the radio. "By the way, you two fancy some music before we get there?"

Travis switched on the radio, which began playing a familiar song that all them of them recognized immediately. Jesse was not in the mood to swing and dance in the truck. On the other hand, Miss Edmunds and Travis were in a much more upbeat mood, singing along with the song.

"Come on, Jess!" Miss Edmunds encouraged him to join her in the fun. "You know the words to this. We sang it all the time in class, remember?"

"Yeah," Jess moaned, "but-"

"Raindrops keep falling on my head." Miss Edmunds and Travis chorused together. "And just like the guy whose feet are too big for his bed. Nothing seems to fit. Those raindrops keep falling on my head, they keep falling…"

"COME ON, KID!" Travis nudged Jesse. "Where's your enthusiasm?"

Jesse sighed heavily and joined in singing the rest of the song as they rode along the empty stretching highway.

"So I just did me some talking to the sun. And I said I didn't like the way he got things done. Sleeping on the job, those raindrops keep falling on me head. They keep falling…"

…

The End

…

Author's Note: Wait, don't you guys leave yet! I still have an alternate ending to post up.


	13. Chapter 13

Disclaimer: BTT and Silent Hill belong to Katherine Paterson and Konami respectfully. No profit is being made out of this work.

…

Alternate Ending

…

A third car zoomed past Miss Edmunds, hitching for a ride. This was becoming most frustrating for her.

"Damn it!" she stomped her foot and kicked the dirt at the side of the road. "People are SO inconsiderate these days. It wasn't this hard to get a ride back in my days."

Jesse noticed something floating in the clouds. At first it appeared as a tiny speck, but as it drew closer, it turned out that Jesse had discovered a flying alien spacecraft. He pointed it out for his ex-teacher.

"Look!" Jesse exclaimed. "Up there!"

The spacecraft descended upon the two drifters and landed safely. A stairway opened up and out emerged numerous aliens, short in height but curious nonetheless of the Earthlings. They encircled them, armed with their technologically advanced laser pistols. This made Miss Edmunds feel most unsettled.

"Um, Jess…" she nudged, whispering in his ear. "…I think we should leave."

Jesse didn't sense any hostility in the aliens. He approached them with care…hoping to make a peaceful conversation with them.

"Er, hi there." Jesse scratched his head casually. "Um, my name is Jesse and this is my teacher, Miss Edmunds. It's a pleasure to meet you. Um…I guess we were wondering if maybe you guys would be kind enough to give us a ride home? Er…we'd appreciate it if-YEEEEEOOOOOW!"

One of the aliens zapped his gun at Jesse without warning, rendering him unconscious.

"HEY!" Miss Edmunds exclaimed at the aliens. "What did you bozos do that for? He was just asking for a favor…AAAAAAAAAAH!"

Another one zapped Miss Edmunds from behind, rendering her unconscious as well. The aliens communicated to each other in their own language, deciding to carry the two humans back to their ship.

The spacecraft swiftly took off and disappeared through the clouds…through the Earth's atmosphere…and deep into space.

…

The End

…

Author's Note: Okay, for those who are confused, the Silent Hill video games often have a recurring joke ending where aliens and UFOs make an appearance from out of nowhere and whisk the hero away from his quest. And since this story is a SH crossover, I couldn't resist throwing it in for laughs. lol

Trivial note: I'm surprised that none of you have noticed the fact that Jesse's therapist is actually Laura from Silent Hill 2 (all grown up here of course). Well, there's something for you to think about now that I'm done with this story…

Thank for all the reviews, people! See you next time!


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